Manchester City's Tunnel Club feels exclusively intimate... but only those who leave their seats early will see the really juicy things for their £7,500
- Manchester City drew 1-1 with Everton on Monday night in the Premier League
- The Tunnel Club at the Etihad Stadium gathered plenty of attraction on Monday
- From a fans dining table, they can watch the City players arrive at the stadium
- Supporters can watch both sets of players do their media interviews too
An hour before kick-off at the Etihad Stadium on Monday night and two of Pep Guardiola's technical staff were standing by a video screen deep beneath the main stand.
At a Manchester City supporter's request, they were running through clips of the dangers that may about to be presented by Wayne Rooney. It turned out to be quite appropriate.
The two staff are genuinely part of Guardiola's analytics team, the clips part of packages sent to the City first team squad ahead of Monday night's game. This is part of what you get for upwards of £7,500-a-season – or £299-a-game - in City's new Tunnel Club. It was the up-close-and-personal stuff that Monday's crowd were there for.
Everton and Manchester City players can be seen walking from the Tunnel Club
The likes of Gabriel Jesus, John Stones and Leighton Baines can all be seen from Tunnel Club
Supporters, who seemed to very much enjoy the experience, take photos of the players
You also get very well fed and watered – beforehand, at half-time and afterwards – but as City's well-publicised new supporter facility showcased for the first time, it was the up-close-and-personal stuff the crowd were there for.
From that point of view, this turned out to be a pretty busy evening. The core attraction of the Tunnel Club is indicated by the name. From your dining table or seat at the bar, you can watch the City players arrive at the stadium and see both teams enter and leave the field through one-way glass.
Afterwards, if you care to, you can watch them do their media interviews too. It does feels exclusively intimate.
It's an American Football concept, born at the home of the Dallas Cowboys. Tottenham will have a similar set-up at their new stadium and other clubs will doubtless follow, providing City and Spurs can sell enough tickets at these premium prices.
Part of the attraction is the voyeurism. The pre-match Q&A with City coach Brian Kidd was interesting while in the future he will be joined at the microphone by a first team player.
But it's seeing what others can't (or can't afford to) that lies at the base of this concept. As the City blurb promised: It's about 'back stage access to world class football'.
So as the teams made the walk from the dressing rooms on Monday night – 106 steps apparently – the glass walls of the Tunnel Club were three deep. The camera phones were out as pre-match pleasantries were exchanged and mascots high-fived.
But what about the controversial stuff? What did happen when Kyle Walker and then Morgan Schneiderlin was sent off? What was the extent of their rage as they walked down the tunnel, corporate viewing points stationed either side?
Pep Guardiola can be seen doing his pre-match interview from the Tunnel Club
Guardiola high fives fans as he arrives at the Etihad Stadium on Monday night
Well, we will of course never know because at that stage everybody was outside sitting on cushioned seats watching the football from the best seats in the house. And this, I suppose, is the rub. Only those obsessive enough to abandon the action will ever get to see the really juicy things.
The fleet-footed may have been downstairs quick enough to see Guardiola harangue referee Bobby Madley at the end but on the whole it seems the tunnel will not be forced to give up too many of its best secrets. And that, one imagines, is exactly how City and everybody else would want it.
Phil Jagielka, Ashley Williams and Jordan Pickford in the tunnel prior to kick-off in Manchester
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