Ian Cheeseman: Forever Blue

Surely 2024 can’t be as good for Manchester City as 2023 was?

If the number of trophies they lifted is how you define a great year then the truth is that equalling the feats of the year just gone will be impossible. To begin with, there’ll be no Club Would Cup in 2024 which was the tournament the Blues won in Saudi Arabia just before Christmas. The next Club World Cup is a month-long tournament in the USA in summer 2025, which City have already qualified for.

The treble, of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, which Pep Guardiola’s team so gloriously won, could be repeated. As we enter the new year City have a last sixteen, two-legged tie with FC Copenhagen in the Champions League to look forward to, a home tie against Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup and they sit just behind the leaders in the Premier League title race, with a game in hand. On the pitch everything seems perfectly poised with Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland, John Stones and Jeremy Doku all set to return to full fitness very soon.

City’s title rivals seem to be stuttering when they should have been taking advantage of the trip to Saudi Arabia which meant the Blues fell a game behind in the Premier League.

Off the field, I can see the progress of the new North Stand extension, hotel and events area, which should be complete by 2026. That’ll come around sooner that we might want it to.

The repercussions of the European Court of Justice’s ruling that UEFA and FIFA contravened EU law when preventing the formation of a Super League due to restriction of trade might well lead to the 115 charges against the club for breaking FFP rules becoming nul and void. That decision might now come more quickly than previously expected.

Being in Saudi to witness City’s latest triumph was emotional for me. I felt very lucky to be there. I know many so-called “legacy fans” who were following City all over the country in their darkest days who couldn’t afford the time, money or complications of travelling to the middle east just before Christmas. I wish they could all have been with me.

I had my reservations about travelling to Jeddah, but football should not be about politics although it can and does draw people together that might not always share a common culture. There were a couple of days, while I was there, where I knew no-one and could have felt very isolated but ordinary Saudi’s were very kind and supportive in a way I don’t see everywhere on my travels.

On the way to the stadium from my hotel, which was just under two miles away, a local spotted me with two other City fans as we walked along the side of the road. He asked us if we needed help. We’d had problems ordering a taxi, so he took us to the stadium at no charge. On the return journey I had more issues ordering a taxi, so a young steward patiently helped out and I got back to the hotel safely. What I learnt was never judge the people of a country by the reputation of the politics.

My wish for 2024 is of course for Manchester City to repeat their trophy winning exploits for 2023, but more importantly I want to enjoy watching the beautiful game, so brilliantly reinvented by Pep Guardiola among the City football and the wider human family. Let’s live together respectfully, with kindness and in peace. Football truly is the beautiful game and it’s Great to be a Blue!