MANCHESTER CITY owner Sheikh Mansour will pay the travel costs for “several thousand” fans to attend the Champions League final.

City have received an allocation of 6,000 tickets for the May 29 showpiece against Chelsea in Porto.

Eligible supporters will now be offered a place on the club’s official trip to Porto when they purchase their tickets.

Travel to and from Portugal will take place within a 24-hour period, as a Portuguese government minister had said would need to be the case last week.

A City statement read: “Thousands of City supporters will benefit from the initiative which is designed to ease the financial pressure on fans who have faced — and are still facing — challenging circumstances due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Uefa did not mention the 24-hour requirement when the European governing body confirmed it was moving the match from Istanbul to Porto, due to travel restrictions, last Thursday.

City fans with other arrangements may now consider cancelling and booking onto the official trip.