A Tense Story After Man City Massacred Sporting At UCL: The Plane Was Hit By Strong Winds In The Aftermath Of Hurricane Dudley, Had Failed To Land

Manchester City player playing at Sporting CP (Twitter.com/@ManCity)

JAKARTA - A tense moment was experienced by the Manchester City squad after playing against Sporting CP in the Champions League on Wednesday, February 16 last. When they were about to return to England, their plane failed to land due to strong winds from Hurricane Dudley.

Reporting from the Daily Star, Friday, the Boeing 757 plane carrying the Man City squad from Lisbon to England is scheduled to land at Manchester Airport on Thursday, 17 February. However, the pilot of the Titan Airways chartered plane failed to land at the destination airport due to strong winds surrounding the airport.

This situation occurred considering that recently the UK was hit by Hurricane Dudley which resulted in rapid and extreme weather changes.

In the video shown by Aviation Upclose via YouTube, it can be seen that the Man City plane was unable to move on the runway. The plane was even slightly carried away by the strong wind.

With that condition, the pilot then made maximum efforts to land the plane at Manchester Airport. But the unfavorable conditions finally forced the pilot to bring the plane back into the air.

The same source later said the pilot was looking for an alternative airport to be able to land the plane. After getting permission, the Manchester City squad was finally taken to John Lennon Airport in Liverpool for safety.

Graphics from the Flight Radar website show the plane that took the Man City team around Manchester City three times before deciding to land in Liverpool. The wind speed at Manchester Airport when the plane was about to land was reported to be more than 70 kilometers per hour which is considered quite dangerous.

Luckily, the tense moment was overcome by the pilot and the Manchester City squad was finally able to return to their base. Through the official Twitter account, Manchester City reported that the squad had arrived safely.

"We can confirm the plane carrying the first team home from Lisbon has landed safely in Liverpool after strong winds forced a diversion from Manchester," Man City wrote shortly after the squad arrived.

We can confirm the plane transporting the first team home from Lisbon has landed safely in Liverpool, after high winds forced a diversion from Manchester.#ManCity

— Manchester City (@ManCity) February 16, 2022

In the first leg meeting of the Champions League round of 16, The Citizens managed to beat Sporting Lisbon with a landslide score of 5-0. Bernardo Silva became the star of City's victory in that match after scoring two goals, while other goals were contributed by Riyad Mahrez, Phil Folden and Raheem Sterling.