THOUSANDS of Italian football fans are descending on Manchester for the Champions League Final between Juventus and AC Milan.
About 35,000 extra visitors were expected to pass through the gates at Manchester Airport, making it the busiest day in its history, before the match at Manchester United's Old Trafford stadium.
More than 400 flights have been laid on and supplies of Italian beer have been flown in for city centre pubs and clubs, many of which will be accepting euros over the counter for the day.
Some bar staff have even been given crash courses in Italian and handed photos of the two teams to ensure their visitors are given a friendly welcome.
For the city's police, it is the largest sporting event since last year's Commonwealth Games and a number of the volunteers which made that event a success will once again be on the streets acting as city guides.
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