Manchester City hold firm stance on city centre trophy parade if they lose Champions League final | OneFootball

Premier League and FA Cup winners Manchester City hold a very firm stance on the idea of holding a trophy parade if they were to lose this weekend.

Pep Guardiola and his players take on Serie A giants Inter in the 2023 Champions League final, hosted at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey – their second-ever appearance at this stage of the competition.

Manchester City will be hoping to make up for the disappointment of the final two years ago, when they faced Premier League rivals Chelsea in a Porto-based final. It was Thomas Tuchel’s side who came out on top, courtesy of a single goal from Kai Havertz.

City however come into this season’s final on much better form, having completed the league and cup double through a 2-1 win over Manchester United in the Emirates FA Cup final on Saturday afternoon – the first meeting between the two clubs at that stage of the tournament.

Despite the success of the domestic season, Manchester City have now very clearly outlined their stance on the possibility of an end-of-season trophy parade depending on the two possible outcomes this weekend.

According to Jack Gaughan of the Mail, Manchester City have planned out a trophy celebration in front of thousands of supporters on Monday 12 June, where the club hope to show off a treble of silverware in the Premier League, FA Cup, and a first ever Champions League title.

That celebration is understood to be a city centre open-top bus parade, culminating in an on-stage show for supporters – although the specific details including routes and times remain unknown at this stage.

However, it is firmly stated that should Manchester City fail to win in Saturday night’s Champions League final in Turkey, then the club will not be holding any form of celebration as initially planned the following Monday.

Many of Manchester City’s first-team stars will be expected to immediately jet off for international action just days after the Champions League final, beginning their private and personal holidays after those matches are out of the way.

City then return for pre-season in late July, when they head to Asia for a tour of South Korea and Japan, with friendly matches scheduled against the likes of Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid.

Pep Guardiola and his players also have their first competitive fixture earlier than initially anticipated, after their wins in the Premier League and FA Cup final booked a place in the Community Shield against top-flight runners-up Arsenal.

That contest is expected to take place on the weekend of August 5/6 at Wembley Stadium, with the brand new Premier League season kicking off seven days later.