Man City fire: Huge blaze erupts as fans flee hours before crunch Champions League tie | Football | Sport
A huge blazing fire broke out at the Etihad Stadium just hours before Manchester City’s Champions League clash against Club Brugge on Wednesday night.
According to an eyewitness at the scene, the fire broke out at one of the burger vendors located outside the stadium at around 6pm – just two hours before the game was due to kick off.
Smoke could be seen billowing out in the night sky as the fire raged on, with the front of the stadium evacuated by security staff. Emergency services rushed to the scene to tackle the flames and the fire has now been put out.
Unconfirmed reports suggest there were no people injured as a result of the fire, but this is yet to be confirmed by authorities at the scene.
City’s new January signings were due to be presented on stage outside the ground when the blaze broke out, prompting dozens of fans to clear the area.
Omar Marmoush, Abdukodir Khusanov, and Vitor Reis were due to be unveiled in front of hundreds of supporters waiting outside.
However, Manchester City confirmed in a statement they had cancelled plans to unveil their new signings after the fire.
It read: “Manchester City FC can confirm that there has been a fire in one of the outside merchandise kiosks, located near the entrance to the Colin Bell West Stand. Emergency services are present at the scene and the fire has now been extinguished.
“The safety of all attending the match tonight is our top priority, and as such all events planned for West Stand reception have been cancelled, including the welcome event for new players, and the first team arrival.”
It painted a worrying scene for the fans on a crucial night for City, with their Champions League hopes hanging in the balance.
It is not yet known whether the game will go still ahead as planned with the kick-off due at 8pm (GMT), with Sky Sports News reporting that they are still considering whether it is safe to do so.
Pep Guardiola‘s side were set to take on Brugge in a must-win encounter, with their Champions League hopes resting firmly on a victory in front of the City faithful.
The Premier League champions have given themselves everything to do on matchday eight after losing 4-2 to PSG last time out, with the French side also battling to secure their qualification for the play-off stage.
Guardiola’s side have 10 points from their seven European fixtures this season. But they haven’t won any of their last four fixtures in the competition, losing three times in the process.
Prior to their defeat in Paris last time out, City fell to a 2-0 loss at Juventus in Turin and threw away a three-goal lead against Feyenoord in their last tie at home.
They were also humbled by Sporting Lisbon 4-1 in Portugal, with Viktor Gyokeres helping himself to a hat-trick in Ruben Amorim‘s final game in charge.
Their last victory in the competition came back in October when they strolled past Sparta Prague 5-0 at the Etihad.