24 years later: Man City given chills at Vale Park

Memories of 1998 may be a little hazy for some, but certain moments throughout history will stand the test of time and remain part of football folklore forever. In the case of Port Vale Football Club, March 14, 1998 is one of those days.

Those who made a pilgrimage to Vale Park that day can likely recall with complete clarity what they did, where they stood and who they hugged when the goals went in. At the time, events on the field felt natural enough.

Manchester City were in town, but that was not entirely noteworthy given the respective standings of those involved.

Fast forward to the present and Blues from the Etihad Stadium are priced at 11/4 in Champions League betting online at Betfair. Pep Guardiola’s side are Premier League title holders and a team attracting plenty of support within Champions League predictions as an elusive continental crown is chased down. Back in the late 90s, the picture for those who called Maine Road home at the time was markedly different. City were about as far away from being contenders for European glory as they have ever been, with a tumble about to be taken into the third tier of English football.

Port Vale helped to nudge them through that trapdoor, with a memorable campaign seeing six points taken from the North West giants that had drifted into a serious slumber. Those exploits counted for plenty in a final reckoning that delivered a 19th-place finish.

Notable scalp

While the Valiants overcoming the Citizens barely registered on a footballing Richter scale at the time, it was still an achievement of considerable note. John Rudge’s men may have been punching above their weight on a regular basis, but the claiming of a prized scalp was always cause for celebration.

A 2-1 triumph over City perhaps faded into the background somewhat as a 3-2 victory away from home in Manchester had been enjoyed just four months earlier. While there is plenty to be said for winning on your home patch, it is successes on the road that live longest in the memory banks.

Vale have, however, crossed paths with City on just three occasions since edging them out in the spring of 98 and have come unstuck in each of those contests.

That makes said outing from more than two decades ago all the more noteworthy as it represents the last time in which a member of English football’s modern-day elite was given a taste of their own medicine in the Potteries.

Club legend Martin Foyle and Premier League-bound Gareth Ainsworth were the men to find the target against City, with a decisive effort registered 17 minutes from time.

The visitors included the likes of Kit Symons, Uwe Rosler and Georgi Kinkladze in their ranks that day, with plenty of top-flight pedigree to be found in a team that was still finding its feet under recently appointed manager Joe Royle.

24  years later the emotions and memories of giving Manchester City nightmares still run strong in North Staffordshire.