Istanbul CL Final chaos | City Matters statement (p 133)

[East Level 2]

Apart from the result I think that Porto was a much better experience.. That’s purely because of the ridiculous stadium location this year… In Porto we were drinking by the river until mid to late afternoon then an easy (compared to the fiasco in Istanbul) trip to the ground..

I agree Porto was much better, but the crowd was much smaller due to Covid. The main advantage was that the stadium wasn't f'ing miles from the city centre and the shuttle bus drivers knew where they were going.
It also helped that the stadium staff and security looked like they'd had more than 30 seconds training, and the surrounding area didn't look like a building site.

 

[East Level 2]

Could they build a stadium stop on the goods line that runs north of the stadium, and would it be possible to run passenger services, or would the line need an upgrade?

 

[Dodge]

And that's the short version of that queue as I was in it for 2hrs, at one point the queue snaked back on itself, got to the bit where the disney style queuing started at about 9.45pm and took the decision to sack it off as there was no way I was missing the players coming out or the start of the game.

Instead of experiencing the build up in our seats, we were stood in a bloody queue and couldn't even get anything.

Thanks UEFA you c*nts.

Yeah I took that pic just before half time

 

[Gray]

I still think a Monorail would be the best option, add something to the City as well.

 

[Citizen of Legoland]

Could they build a stadium stop on the goods line that runs north of the stadium, and would it be possible to run passenger services, or would the line need an upgrade?

Anything could be built if someone provides the money. But even then there are huge logistical reasons for why it probably won’t happen.

 

[berger1985]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Weirdly enough, I lost access to my City Matters account shortly after I posted it publicly. Only just sorted it.

The club came back to me with a somewhat positive reply to the report, without really addressing the parts that related to themselves. We are meeting with them tomorrow (a wider meeting, touching upon the group's governance for example) and we have reiterated that we would like them to comment publicly and improve the areas that related to the club. We would also like to see the evidence that they submitted to the UEFA independent of my report. Presuming that doesn't happen (and I don't hold out much hope), then we will start to ramp up some of the other avenues that we have used to publicise the issues faced in Istanbul and the report.

One of the positive aspects from the club is that they passed on the report to UEFA. As reported in the MEN, UEFA have agreed to meet with the club over the issues. I think that at least me and the City Matters chair will be attending that meeting.

As some have mentioned on here, I am in the process of asking local politicians to raise the matter. I would have done this sooner had it not been for my technology issues recently. Having experience of local and national politics myself, I will probably be able to liaise with Lucy Powell as my MP (quite helpfully she is Shadow Secretary of Culture, Media and Sports) but I may need others to do so with other local politicians.

In short, that was a long way of saying that there has been some limited progress with this. To be honest, that isn't unexpected given the limited standing of City Matters and the approach to fan welfare by too many of the governing bodies. However, having been in Istanbul and hearing so much from supporters, this isn't something I intend to let just wither away.

Thanks for pursuing this on behalf of all of us that had to experience that shit show. My own experience was not too different to those who submitted reports and I'm glad someone is doing something about exposing it.

 

[East Level 2]

Anything could be built if someone provides the money. But even then there are huge logistical reasons for why it probably won’t happen.

There is (or was) an old station, I think it was called Park, down Briscoe Lane, so it might be possible to reopen that at a lower cost. Or build something new when they demolish the gas works site.
Reopening Park station was considered before the Commonwealth Games so it might not require too much work.

 

[Bluemanc100]

I agree Porto was much better, but the crowd was much smaller due to Covid. The main advantage was that the stadium wasn't f'ing miles from the city centre and the shuttle bus drivers knew where they were going.
It also helped that the stadium staff and security looked like they'd had more than 30 seconds training, and the surrounding area didn't look like a building site.

The only hairy moment for me was being with some of the lads I’d met (I went to Porto alone) then getting split up at the metro station and ending up on the Chelsea tram … to be fair they were fine.. I’d been for a nightcap on the Friday night at an Italian Indian gaff (honestly) across from my Air BnB that had a large table of Chelsea fans at it.. pretty pissed.. I got a little sarcasm at first as I was wearing a City Mercer top but then spent a good few hours chatting football and having a good laugh.. They never let me put my hand in my pocket once.. The ironic thing was that none of them thought they had a chance of winning the game ..

 

[west didsblue]

I still think a Monorail would be the best option, add something to the City as well.

Just needs the Piccadilly rail link via the disused viaduct in Ardwick reinstating and a new station near the Athletics stadium. There would then be direct links to both Piccadilly and Victoria. Having the new arena there should be sufficient to justify it along with the increased capacity of the stadium. That would ease the congested Metrolink and buses.

 

[Citizen of Legoland]

Just needs the Piccadilly rail link via the disused viaduct in Ardwick reinstating and a new station near the Athletics stadium. There would then be direct links to both Piccadilly and Victoria. Having the new arena there should be sufficient to justify it along with the increased capacity of the stadium. That would ease the congested Metrolink and buses.

Got a spare £2billion?