Manchester City’s humbled stars have dipped into their own pockets to refund the 374 supporters who braved the Arctic Circle to witness Tuesday night’s humiliating 3-1 Champions League defeat at Bodo/Glimt.
With away tickets costing around £25, Pep Guardiola’s squad will stump up a total of £9,357 after their shock collapse in sub-zero conditions — one of the biggest upsets in the competition’s history.
City’s leadership group of Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias, Rodri and Erling Haaland issued a grovelling apology on behalf of the players, admitting the fans deserved far better than what they saw in freezing Norway.
“Our supporters mean everything to us,” the quartet said.
“We know the sacrifice our fans make when they travel across the world to support us, home and away. We will never take that for granted.
“It was a lot of travelling for the fans who supported us in the freezing cold throughout a difficult evening on the pitch.
“Covering the cost of these tickets is the least we can do.”
The gesture has been warmly received by City’s Official Supporters’ Club, with many fans having trekked to one of Europe’s most remote footballing outposts to back the champions.
OSC representative Kevin Parker said:
“City fans will travel to the ends of the earth — and last night really was the Arctic Circle.
“Bodo is not easy to get to, and the temperatures made it even tougher. The connection between the players and fans is special, and this gesture means a lot to us.”
But the goodwill comes after a night to forget for Guardiola’s men, who were outplayed by their Norwegian hosts in a result Haaland himself branded “embarrassing”.
The £51million striker told TNT Sports:
“Bodo played some incredible football. It was deserved. I don’t know what to say. What I can say is sorry.”
City now face real pressure in Europe, needing a win against Galatasaray in their final league-phase match to secure a top-eight finish.