Manchester City’s players will refund ticket costs for fans who flew all the way to the Arctic Circle only to witness a humiliating 3-1 defeat to Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League.
City suffered one of the most chastening results in their history on Tuesday as the Norwegian minnows claimed their first Champions League group-stage victory.
The entire 55,000 population of Bodo could nearly fit into City’s Etihad Stadium, while the financial gulf between the clubs is huge.
City’s players have agreed to reimburse the cost of tickets for the 374 supporters who made the trip.
Tickets for the tie at the tiny Aspmyra Stadion cost around £25 ($33) each.
A statement on Wednesday from City’s group of captains, comprising Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias, Rodri and Erling Haaland, said: “Our supporters mean everything to us.
“We know the sacrifice that our fans make when they travel across the world to support us home and away and we will never take it for granted. They are the best fans in the world.
“We also recognise that it was a lot of travelling for the fans who supported us in the freezing cold throughout a difficult evening for us on the pitch.
“Covering the cost of these tickets for the fans who travelled to Bodo is the least we can do.”
City’s only wins in their past seven games have come in the FA Cup third round against third-tier Exeter and in the first leg of the League Cup semi-final against Newcastle.
They have not won a Premier League match this year and last weekend’s limp 2-0 loss at Manchester United left them seven points behind leaders Arsenal.
The refund gesture was welcomed by Kevin Parker, a representative of City’s official supporters club.
“Manchester City fans will travel to the ends of the earth to support our team, and last night was no different in the Arctic Circle,” Parker said.
“Bodo is not an easy place to get to, and the sub-zero temperatures made it a challenging evening on a number of levels for our fans.
“The City support has an incredible connection with the players on a match day, and this gesture is yet another reminder of that relationship — it means a lot to us.”