Manchester City made the most of home advantage last season and Pep Guardiola hopes they will again despite growing issues
Mikel Arteta famously made his Arsenal players prepare for Liverpool by training while loudspeakers blasted out You'll Never Walk Alone.
It certainly was noisy, although the matches shortly before it against Bayern and Arsenal felt more partisan, more visceral. They felt like as well as the players were ready to turn predators into prey, so were 55,000 around the pitch. Of course, it has not always been like that. Like many teams moving from an old historic stadium to a newbuild - Arsenal have experienced the same going from Highbury to the Emirates - it took time for the atmosphere to build and attendances dipped below 40,000 before the takeover in 2008. Even with the success that Pep Guardiola has brought and an extension to 55,000 seats, it is only in the last few years that Champions League group stage matches have begun to sell out every time.
City have not lost any of their last 38 games at the Etihad with 33 wins and five draws in that time, a run dating back to November 2022. This season they can surpass the club record of 42 unbeaten set at Hyde Road over a century ago The manager would always rather more noise than not - even boos - and he has asked fans to repeat their levels from the United match for the big games in the run-in against Arsenal, Villa, Real Madrid and the rest. A coach who wants every advantage possible will leave no stone unturned.
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