Although the flag is yet to drop on the start of the new Premier League season, there is already a buoyant mood sweeping its way through the Manchester football scene.
The Lionesses, inspired by the heroics of Manchester United's Ella Toone and Manchester City's Chloe Kelly, have done something no England team has done since 1966 and won a major tournament. It has secured the Lionesses their place in history - something that can never be taken away from them or the country.
With 87,192 people shuffling their way through the Wembley turnstiles, making it the most attended European Championship final in history, either for men or women, and a peak TV audience of 17.4million tuning in either at home, down the pub or at one of the various fan parks littered across the country, Sarina Wiegman's team turned to their most reliable weapons to send the country bonkers on the final Sunday of July - their togetherness and spirit. After Toone saw her outstanding chip cancelled out by Germany's Lina Magull with just 11 minutes of normal time remaining, extra time beckoned and the dreaded thought of a penalty shoot-out began to enter millions of nervous minds.
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But following a tight and tense opening period of extra time, England launched one last knockout blow within five minutes of the start of the second, with Kelly, on as a substitute to replace Golden Boot winner Beth Mead, delivering the all-important punch. At a second attempt, she stabbed the ball over the line. Eruption. Not just inside Wembley but across the whole country. The determination and spirit of this group shone through yet again.
11 minutes later, the Lionesses had written their place in history, not only becoming the first team to beat Germany in a women's European Championship final, but becoming the first England team in 56 years to win something worth writing home about. Leah Williamson - a colossus at the back throughout the tournament - had the honour of following in Sir Bobby Moore's footsteps and lifting the trophy aloft, before it was quickly passed to City striker Ellen White and former City midfielder Jill Scott, both of whom deserve this success more than anyone for the journeys they have been on in the women's game.
Although the six goals and five assists from Arsenal star Mead and the four strikes from United ace Alessia Russo have often seen those two singled out for praise - which they both richly deserve - this was a team effort, right the way through from Wiegman galvanising her team by installing incredible belief and confidence on the touchline to United goalkeeper Mary Earps' heroics between the sticks. The spirit has been inspirational.
Earps, who gatecrashed Wiegman's post-match press conference by dancing on the table while singing 'Football's Coming Home', was one of the unsung heroes of this unrivalled triumph. As safe as houses between the sticks, the United shot-stopper kept four clean sheets in six matches, conceding just two goals, and did not make a single error, with her contributions against Spain in the quarter-finals and Sweden in the last-four not going unnoticed.
Moving through the team, former City star Lucy Bronze was as brilliant as ever at right-back, while current City ace Keira Walsh often went under the radar, dictating proceedings in midfield. Her passing, not just on Sunday but throughout the tournament, was crisp, clean and polished. Her pass for Toone's opener will be played over and over again.
Georgia Stanway, who has left City this summer to test herself in Germany with Bayern Munich, picked her moments to add another dusting of magic to this England team, with her extra-time winner against Spain almost a fortnight ago one of the most cherished moments of the tournament. In attack, continuing the domination of City past and present, Lauren Hemp and White, both still on the club's books, played their parts, even if the latter will have been disappointed to have ended the tournament with just two goals to her name.
And if the starting line-up, which remained unchanged throughout the whole tournament, did not have enough of a Manchester representation, the substitutes Wiegman often turned to most certainly did, with United duo Toone and Russo, who each captured the hearts of the nation in different ways, and Kelly, who could not have picked a better time to score her first England goal, currently on City's books.
If anything, the Manchester-based players were central to this special triumph, with Russo's four-goal haul making her a household name in English football when only a few weeks ago she was a complete unknown. Her cheeky back-heel against Sweden in the semi-final last week will never be forgotten and will be replicated in school playgrounds up and down the land come the start of the new school year in September.
Toone, a likeable, bubbly and cheeky character, will be remembered for her equaliser against Spain and her opener against Germany, which set up the Lionesses' final push in pursuit of sporting immortality. This team, these players and these women have changed the landscape of women's football in Manchester and across the whole country in less than a month, with hard work, unrivalled passion and characters you can warm to being at the forefront of their efforts.
Winning the trophy is one thing, but winning the hearts of the nation and inspiring the next generation of young girls who want to get into football is the biggest victory of them all. While the Lionesses produced slick, eye-catching football throughout the tournament, highlighting the work that has gone on behind the scenes, it was the heart and the mindset of this group that often shone through.
Pointless and needless debates about it being compared to the men's game continue to rumble on, even when the Lionesses have generated a party atmosphere across the country that ought to be embraced. The sport should be enjoyed for what it is, without needless comparisons being made. It has brought the country to its feet, put smiles on the faces of millions and, at long last, ended 56 years of hurt.
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