Overview

We were visiting fans with the away supporters. In theory we should have been escorted to our seats. However, our escort wasn’t sure where our seats were so we ended up with a bit of a tour past some hospitality areas and up to the wrong floor and ended up being left in the home end! We managed to get let back through to the away end and found our seats. A lady came and took our food order and even got us chips which are not available at the kiosks in the away end. We had a great view from our seats. However, wheelchair users share the accessible viewing platforms with all the police, security and stewards on that level, who were huddled very close to us for most of the game. One member of staff even rested on my son’s wheelchair handles. We always try to secure a space at the end of the row to give my son a bit of space. Unfortunately this area was occupied by the largest number of staff. This seems to be an issue exclusive to the Etihad and my son found it quite unnerving.

Transport & Parking

We secured a parking space in the grey car park right next to the stadium. We were escorted inside by a steward meaning we were unable to explore the external concourse or even buy a program. He took us to the wrong floor, realised his mistake and then took us to the right level but with the home support instead of the away end!

Access

Toilets

Only one for the away fans but a good size and well located so wasn’t too much of a fight to get to. The lock didn’t stop radar keys being able to open the door from the outside though.

Staff

The staff were a real mixture. Most were very friendly but a lot were not very helpful or knowledgeable. However there were a few that were excellent and really helpful. I think as a rule of thumb, the staff in the yellow high vis are the most senior, experienced and helpful! I love that the staff take food orders from fans using the wheelchair platforms.