Man City's Champions League celebrations in pictures: Haaland's cigar, McDonalds, and beers
Erling Haaland sucked on a cigar, Jack Grealish was busy supping on bottles of Asahi and Riyad Mahrez was only too happy to receive a McDonald’s order after a night of heavy celebrations.
Manchester City’s Treble stars were all laughs and smiles as they headed back home from Istanbul on Sunday afternoon sporting blue club T-shirts bearing the words “The Best Team In England & All Of Europe” and with no end to the party in sight.
City’s staff and squad flew back to Manchester on a club-liveried Etihad Airways Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and on Monday night are due to hold a Treble parade in Manchester city centre, when tens of thousands of fans are expected to flock to watch them show off the Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup.
The celebrations were in full swing as soon as the players got back to the dressing room at the Ataturk Stadium in the wake of their 1-0 win over Inter Milan, with the entire squad singing “Rodri’s on fire” to the tune of Gala’s 1996 hit ‘Freed From Desire’ as City’s jubilant matchwinner lapped up the attention, and there was no let up thereafter.
"Rodri's on fire!" 🔥#ManCity | #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/wtkDnslH2O
— Manchester City (@ManCity) June 11, 2023
As John Stones urged reporters to spare him any interviews so he could go and enjoy his first beer for 11 months and Haaland pretended to fall asleep listening to Rodri talk before tiring of waiting and declaring “F--- it” as he happily ambled off, Pep Guardiola was spotted in the distance staring at a television screen.
It was showing a repeat of Romelu Lukaku’s missed header and, when one passer-by asked how the Inter Milan striker had not scored, the City manager blew out his cheeks, his relief still etched large.
City partied through the night in Istanbul at their swanky JW Marriott hotel base on the Marmara Sea. Haaland was pictured smoking a cigar at 7am as Grealish and his team-mates downed beers, the England international also pictured alongside Formula One driver George Russell who joined the celebrations.
Mahrez appeared grateful to have a McDonalds handed over by a City staffer before the squad boarded the bus to take them to the airport on Sunday afternoon. Grealish was spotted poking his head out of the skylight as the coach prepared to leave.
City’s players will meet up again on Monday with thousands of fans expected to line the parade route, which starts at Tonman Street, Deansgate at 6.30pm before travelling through St Mary’s Gate, Cross Street, King Street and then finishing on the corner of Princess Street and Portland Street. A stage show will be held in Oxford Street, where entertainment starts at 5.30pm. The squad are expected to arrive at about 7.30pm.
