Manchester City U23 manager Brian Barry-Murphy has revealed his players compared Friday night’s clash with Leeds United to facing Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. An unprecedented 21,321 Whites fans showed up to support Andrew Taylor’s U23 outfit - obliterating the Premier League 2 record in the process.
Astonishingly, the crowd was bigger than what Burnley, Brentford and Watford have averaged in the top flight this season. Despite suffering a 3-1 defeat, Leeds supporters rallied behind the young Whites prospects.
Victory for City was inspired by Cole Palmer - who has made 12 appearances for Pep Guardiola’s first team in 2021-12 - and secured the Premier League 2 title. Barry-Murphy, the head of the Elite Development Squad at Eastlands, thinks playing in front of a hostile Elland Road crowd was a fitting way to top off their campaign.
"I think the occasion felt as if it was the perfect combination of a season,” he said. “We went through all kinds of tests, in Europe, in the EFL Trophy, players being injured. To come here with such a home following was brilliant.
"I was watching really closely to see how we reacted to different decisions, phases of the game, all those aspects. They’re priceless in terms of watching the players’ behaviour in different situations.
"It was a tough game, Leeds were strong, buoyed by that sense within the stadium. It’s hard to compare but our lads were saying what it must have been like for the first team at Atletico Madrid, that swell of emotion in the stadium. It does influence the flow of the game so to come through that and manage the game.
"Some of our play was good and dangerous, more on the counter than normal. We didn’t have many sustained spells of possession but that can be down to the nature of the game and the opposition. There are loads I’ll take away from the game and feedback to the players when it dies down."
City U23 midfielder Romeo Lavia was in awe of the supporters and claimed they made Leeds players raise their game. He added: "It’s crazy, you can see the influence of the crowd. They weren’t giving up because of the crowd. It was good for us to know how to deal with it and it’ll definitely help in the future."
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