Manchester carried a wet, wintry feel into Tuesday night, yet the most striking feature at the Etihad Stadium was not the rain but the swathes of unoccupied seats around it. Manchester City’s 5-1 Champions League victory over AEK Athens unfolded before an announced crowd of 40,042, leaving more than 20,000 places unused in an arena now built for roughly 61,000.
The empty stretches were especially visible in the upper tiers, where whole blocks appeared sparsely populated. Images from the ground travelled quickly through English football circles and rival supporters revived the familiar “Emptyhad” taunt, a play on the stadium’s name and the number of vacant seats.
It was an unusual sight in a season when City’s home gates have otherwise been notably strong. Apart from one League Cup tie, every other match at the Etihad had drawn more than 60,000 spectators. Only a week earlier, more than 60,000 watched Paris Saint-Germain leave Manchester with a 4-2 Champions League win.
A quieter European evening
Several factors surrounded the lower turnout: cold and rain in the city, a succession of home fixtures, and the reduced pull of a Greek opponent compared with Europe’s more established travelling names. There has also been friction between parts of the City support and UEFA, reflected in protests and boos during the Champions League anthem on previous European nights.
The contrast was sharpened by the stadium’s recent expansion. Work on the North Stand has added more than 7,000 seats, taking the Etihad beyond its former scale and giving City one of the larger club grounds in England. On this occasion, the extra capacity made the gaps still more conspicuous.
Enzo Maresca declined to turn the attendance into a complaint after the final whistle. He praised those who did make the journey, recalling the support against Ipswich and saying he expected the atmosphere to return strongly for the two home matches ahead, with Brighton among the visitors on the schedule.
Foden leads the response on the pitch
For those inside the ground, City supplied an emphatic answer in footballing terms. Phil Foden struck three times against AEK, while Elliot Anderson and Rayan Cherki added the other goals in the five-goal display.
The result moved Manchester City to six points from three matches in the Champions League league phase. The crowd may have been smaller than the club has grown accustomed to, but the European evening still ended with a familiar picture: City in control on the pitch, and another continental stop crossed off in Manchester.
