I’m 65 in January; when I was 50 I hoped for a cup final. Never did I imagine what we’ve witnessed. I was in Istanbul, but I got very emotional at the fan park. You see my younger brother died in 2008 (the night we beat WHU in the FA cup 1-0j. I’ve missed him and yearned for him everyday since. The only success he ever witnessed was Gillingham and a couple of promotions. When the song ‘Stop crying your heart out’ was being played and everybody joined in, I lost my composure and had to be comforted by my niece, his daughter.
I have no great recollection of the match, just the goal and the torture of the last 15 minutes as Inter decided to play. Five mins to go, I thought of my brother and begged him to make City win, if he could! He came through, just as he did for us in 2011, 2012 and even last season v Aston Villa. At the final whistle I of course was delighted, but too emotional to savour the enormity of what our magnificent club had achieved. I cried for my brother and thanked him for looking out for us again. I know it sounds ridiculous, but that was my experience. 5 weeks,later, I now feel we have reached the pinnacle, our destiny and I feel complete now. Thanks Tony. X