Growing up in Spain, my family were supporters of Atlético Madrid. I knew about the club mainly because of David Silva, as well as Sergio Agüero going to City and, of course, the 93:20 moment.
From then on I always had City in the back of my mind, but living in Madrid and being quite young I didn’t really follow them.
A few years later, when Pep joined the club, it made the news everywhere, and it really piqued my interest, so I started keeping an eye on them.
Rodri then left Atléti for City and a few years later I moved to the UK, so this was my chance to properly start supporting the club.
I watched the games either at home or at the pub, mainly because I was too scared to go to the Etihad by myself as I didn’t know anyone who supported City and my flatmates weren’t really interested in football.
Then, halfway through my uni course, I decided that I did not want to miss out any longer and finally got the courage to go to the Etihad, and haven’t stopped ever since!
Whenever I go back to Spain I normally stay with my mother and, a few years ago, she moved from Madrid to Mallorca. We didn’t know anyone there, but right next to our house we saw a place called The Manchester Pub, so of course we had to check it out.
They actually run an Official Supporters Club from there, Mallorca Blues, so it has become my go-to spot to watch games whenever I’m back home.
Through that club, and through going to games and talking with other fans online, I’ve made so many friends and have lived experiences that I wouldn’t ever have imagined if I hadn’t supported Man City.
I mostly talk to other City fans online, mainly through X.com (Twitter). I love the community there, especially on match days as it’s always lively and it’s fun to talk to others about what you’re seeing on the screen.
Kieran and I met through social media, on X.com (Twitter). Because we both talk about City on there, at some point I came across his account and we eventually became friends.
We only first met in person back in April, for the Madrid away game, which was amazing as it was one of the first times I’d met up with someone in the City community with whom I had only previously talked with online.
Whenever I’m in Mallorca, I go to the OSC and that’s also incredible. What’s fun is that I’ve slowly started to get some of my family and friends to learn about and actually start caring about the club (even my 93-year-old grandma who didn’t speak a word of English).
On a matchday I get to Piccadilly and I either head into town or go straight to the stadium.
I like to get there 45 minutes in advance because I love watching the players warm up and get ready for the match, so there’s been plenty of times where I’ve just sat there in the cold/rain waiting for the game to start - wouldn’t change it for the world though!
Watching City under Pep has been an absolute pleasure. It’s not just about the style of play, but about seeing players like Phil Foden develop from being an academy talent to one of the top players in the world, as well as about seeing the squad work together time and time again to achieve incredible things.
This year’s record-breaking Premier League win for example, not to mention the Treble, the domestic quadruple and the Centurions season.
I can’t even begin to thank Pep for everything he’s done for the club, it has certainly meant the world to me and to every single City fan out there.
Andrea Rodríguez Lozano
