Somewhere over Vienna, Manchester City’s squad decided they fancied Ibiza. Spirits were high. The party in Istanbul hadn’t really ended; players still in full flow rather than bleary eyed when clambering on the club’s private jet.
Officially the bash at a JW Marriott overlooking the Marmara Sea finished at around 9am the morning after the night before but Pep Guardiola’s stars tagged another 48 hours on top.
En route home, with the Champions League trophy strapped to a seat, a couple of the more senior players wondered if City wouldn’t mind loaning them the Etihad Boeing 787 for a bit.