The atmosphere of a stadium is the foundation of any football game.
Without the fans, football is nothing and the effect these supporters can have on players is incomparable.
There have been a lot of opinions when talking about the Anfield atmosphere, with some fans suggesting that on certain matchdays, it doesn’t live up to its potential. But the footballing world knows all about Anfield's power to change a result.
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But one Premier League team’s stadium has been constantly criticised for its lack of atmosphere, and this was brought to light again this week by one Liverpool legend.
The Emptihad?
The Etihad and Manchester City supporters in recent years have been called out for failing to fill the stadium which therefore leads to a sense of quietness around the ground.
The days of Maine Road and passionate supporters seem to be behind them, and the feeling of enthusiasm has been stripped from the club.
On Wednesday night, City played their first Champions League match of the season. The game was one with minimal chances and a palpable lack of excitement as Pep Guardiola’s side played out a 0-0 draw with Inter Milan.
The game was one to forget, but pundits afterwards had a lot to say about one aspect; the lack of atmosphere.
As reported by Tipsbladet in his native Denmark, Liverpool multiple league title winner Jan Molby ripped into the Citizens on a post-match analysis show for ViaPlay. He stated: “I know that they are often offended when you say that there is a bit of a lack of atmosphere here at the Etihad, but that was the case here tonight.”
“We saw a few fans who were trying desperately to get something going, but it was just one of those nights. It didn't really get going.”
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And it wasn’t just Molby who had an opinion. Former City and Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel didn’t hold back either.
Schmeichel comments on dead Etihad atmosphere
The former Champions League winner uttered: “It was dead. The atmosphere at the Etihad was completely dead today. We could hear the Inter supporters, who were pretty good, but there was no atmosphere at the Etihad today."
For City and Pep, this won’t be positive news. With a huge clash against Arsenal coming up this weekend on home turf, he will be hoping the fans had just forgotten to sing on Wednesday.