Manchester City have been accused of betraying their staff after plans to withdraw two free season tickets from salary packages came to light. Workers at the Etihad have traditionally been given the tickets as a token of appreciation for their efforts on top of their salaries but from next season they will have to pay 50% of a regular season ticket price.

Someone who works for City told the Evening News: “It has created a lot of unrest and I know a lot of people who have worked there years who are now contemplating leaving because of it. We always got two free season tickets which we all classed as part of our salaries. But now we have been told that we can still have two tickets but we will have to pay 50 per cent of the standard price for them. It’s disgraceful and no way to treat staff. It’s a betrayal. They are spending millions on creating a new team in New York while effectively taking money out of the back pockets of their own staff in Manchester. And we are all wondering which level of staff this system starts at. I doubt Patrick Vieira is having to pay for tickets. It just smacks of bad management. The amount of money they will save from it would not be enough to pay Yaya Toure’s wages for two days. And although they announce sell-outs there are always empty seats.”