Champions of England

I find it genuinely astounding, and quite frankly disappointing, that @ManCity continually seem to overlook the contribution of Kevin Horlock to our football club. This is a player who was idolised by the fans. A player who made over 230 appearances, scored 42 goals across three divisions of English football and played an instrumental role in three promotions, helping drag Manchester City back from the third tier of English football. Super Kevin Horlock was a huge part of our club's revival, and his contribution deserves to be remembered and celebrated. Yet somehow, when birthdays come around, the club regularly acknowledges numerous former players and managers, including Mark Hughes, a Manchester United legend whose relatively brief spell as City manager was hardly a roaring success. But Kevin Horlock? Not a mention. Paul Dickov, quite rightly, receives recognition and birthday wishes from the club. And nobody would ever question Paul's place in City folklore. But let's not forget that Horlock actually scored more goals for City than Dickov, despite Paul being a striker. And, of course, without Kevin's crucial goal at Wembley in 1999, would Dickov's iconic equaliser and everything that followed have carried quite the same significance? Both players played their part in changing the course of this football club. This is absolutely no disrespect to Paul, who deserves all the recognition he receives. The point is that Kevin deserves recognition too. We've also recently seen the sad passing of Peter Dobbing, a former Manchester City player from the early 1960s, seemingly without a single acknowledgement from the club. That, too, is incredibly disappointing. Regardless of the era they played in or how many appearances they made, anyone who had the honour of representing Manchester City deserves to be remembered and respected. Surely acknowledging the passing of a former player is the very least we should expect? City are rightly proud of everything the club has achieved, and to be fair, the club does regularly celebrate former players and important moments from our history. That recognition is welcome and absolutely as it should be. But that's precisely why it feels so disappointing when certain individuals appear to be consistently overlooked. It's not that City don't celebrate our history. It's that some of the people who made that history seem to receive far less recognition than others. The players who represented this club through the difficult years, who fought for the badge when success was anything but guaranteed, are every bit a part of what makes Manchester City the club it is today. And before anyone says, "It's only a birthday message", that's completely missing the point. This isn't really about wishing someone a happy birthday. It's about taking those simple opportunities to acknowledge, respect and celebrate the people who helped build our club, particularly those whose contributions far outweigh the recognition they receive. Our history belongs to everyone who contributed to it, not just the names we hear about most often. Kevin Horlock is a Manchester City hero to an entire generation of supporters. He deserves to be treated as one. We should celebrate our present and future, absolutely. But we should never forget the people who helped give us both. Come on, City. We can do better than this. 💙 Super Kevin Horlock. Never forgotten by the fans. And rest in peace, Peter Dobbing. Once a Blue, always a Blue. 💙