Manchester City v Rotherham United: Why Anthony Forde can not wait for return to the Etihad

The Rotherham United winger and team-mate Joe Newell had gathered for the third-round FA Cup draw on December 3 and the celebrations were manic when the Millers were handed a dream trip to Manchester City.

A Birmingham City fan he may be, bit it is the blues of Manchester as opposed to Birmingham that Newell has been getting excited about since the draw was made, with Forde also inundated with requests for tickets from friends and family back home in his native Ireland.

Forde said: “Myself and Joe were watching the draw together in my living room and when it happened, we actually both jumped up and just high-fived each other.

“Everyone is buzzing to get them and it will be an amazing experience to face City, everyone knows about their quality.

“Joe is probably sick of going to Birmingham by now and actually wanted Man City. I wanted them as there were a few ties which came out beforehand in the draw and I thought: ‘do you know what, it would be so good to play a big team like them at their place.’

“I got one or two messages literally not even a minute after the tie was made.

“It obviously limits our chances of getting through to the next round, but you never know in football as it is a funny game.”

Right-winger Forde, one of a select band of Millers players to step out at the Etihad, added: “It was brilliant, to be fair, even though it was just a reserve game when I was at Wolves. That and Old Trafford are the stadiums you want to play at.

“Benjamin Mendy is usually the left-back, although he is injured at the moment. But they can play anyone in any position really, can’t they?”