The clock was ticking towards midnight in Istanbul when the moment Manchester City craved finally arrived and this sprawling old metropolis on the banks of the Bosphorus could turn sky blue.
Manchester City have taken a scenic and often desperately painful route to winning the Champions League, but the journey reached its destination at last as they were finally able to get their hands on the giant trophy with victory over Inter Milan.
The win also completed the Treble of Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup for Pep Guardiola and his side, joining arch-rivals, Manchester United, as the only English club to achieve the feat.
For Guardiola, who paced and pawed at the giant technical areas of Ataturk Stadium in agitation throughout an attritional encounter, this was his legacy sealed, his place among the game’s greats secured by Rodri’s 68th-minute winner.
He knew there would always be an unspoken question mark about his time as Manchester City manager until the Champions League was won.
The judgment on his work would always be framed, unfairly or otherwise, around whether he could add to his two victories with Barcelona in this competition – the last in 2011.
A final shrill blast of Polish referee, Szymon Marciniak’s, whistle will have sounded like the sweetest symphony to Guardiola and Manchester City’s players. This was what they had worked and -make no mistake – suffered for.
In his moment of triumph, Guardiola reacted with relative calm as he turned to make the long walk down to the touchline, offering words of consolation to his Inter opposite number, Simone Inzaghi.
And watching on high in Istanbul was Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour, attending only his second game since the club’s Abu Dhabi owners took control in 2008.
Amid the golden glitter that soared into the Turkish sky as Ilkay Gundogan held the silver trophy aloft, there was a glorious release, an emotional exchange between Guardiola, City’s players and fans – many of whom will remember the misery of long ago when this club spent a season in English football’s third tier in 1998-99, but still drew average attendances of almost 30,000 at Maine Road.
Kevin de Bruyne, who saw a second Champions League final cut cruelly short by injury, accepted this tournament had become both a dream and an obsession.
They have won seven Premier League titles, three FA Cups and six League Cups since they came under Abu Dhabi control.
But the Champions League was the one they always wanted, the one they had eyes on since the day in September 2008 that changed the face of English football.
It has taken time, but Manchester City have now finally changed the face of European football and this could be the start of an era of Champions League domination. –BBC
