'Raise the roof', reads the sign at the top of the soon-to-be expanded North Stand at the Etihad. 'Something special is coming soon,' it continues, as the cranes shooting into Manchester's night sky behind it signal.
That 8,000-capacity increase is one of the many sources of anger from City supporters at the moment, and part of the reason they once again protested before kick-off in their biggest Premier League game of the season ahead of Aston Villa's visit.
By full-time, it was that sign that looked prophetic. Something special had been coming and when Matheus Nunes' slotted home a 94th-minute winner, the roof briefly threatened to come off this place.
It was a night - and particularly a second half - when City's fans responded to Pep Guardiola's demands. The decibel level rose as the key moment of the season came into view, and the rewards were glorious. Another campaign in the Champions League is now within touching distance.
But when the thrill of a last-minute winner fades, those issues that have blighted relations between fans the club they love will continue to occupy minds. It's a strained relationship and it's showing no signs of improving.
And as a juxtaposition, it worked pretty well. As hundreds of City fans protested against a range of ticket issues outside the Etihad, a steady stream of first-time visitors posed for pictures outside the front of the stadium.
It summed up one of the more immediate issues, which is the pricing out of many local supporters, and especially families. As a leaflet handed out by protesting supporters detailed, the cheapest matchday ticket for the fixture with Aston Villa started at £71 for adults and £42 for children.
For a family of four to attend, it was at least £226, before you take into account travel, food and drinks. It led to hundreds, if not thousands of empty seats for City's biggest league game of the season. Season ticket holders unable to attend reported their tickets hadn't been sold on the exchange.
Charging £71 for tickets is never going to be acceptable, but it certainly made matters worse that this game came after the day after the Easter weekend. Common sense should have told City officials it wasn't going to sell out at that price point.
Ticket prices weren't the only issue supporters were angry about. The failure to issue any new season tickets in the previous six seasons is an ongoing gripe and protests about that are planned for the Wolves game at the start of May.
There is also anger at link-ups with ticket selling sites, of which Viagogo is City's ninth partner. "You can stick your Viagogo up your a**e", was one chant at the protest. "You priced out our kids," was another. Thousands of leaflets were handed out by supporters, with one distributing them with the message of "stop the club ripping fans off".
There was an irony to all this, in that it came a day after Guardiola's impassioned plea to supporters ahead of this crunch clash in the Champions League battle.
"It’s a final and we need our people," Guardiola said. "I think our people want the Champions League again next season. Hopefully they can help us from minute one. Don’t wait.
"Sometimes we’re sloppy, not playing good [but] now, now we need them. We need them desperately, the supporters, to make noise and being there all the time because it’s a final for us."
That was in reference to fans waiting until the ninth minute to enter the stands against Leicester City recently, but if City really "need our people," then they've got a funny way of showing it.
But Guardiola got his wish. The atmosphere bubbled up at times last night. Craig Pawson's refereeing inadvertently got the Etihad agitated, and the second half was lively. When James McAtee lofted Kevin De Bruyne's brilliant pass over Emi Martinez and just wide, there was appreciation from supporters, leading to Guardiola to raise both hands in the air and demand more noise.
The Etihad responded at a vital time in the game and regulars and first-time visitors got a moment to savour when Nunes scored. Both were deserving of the reward, but City must listen to the concern of supporters as well, even if they continue to deliver in the stands when it matters.
