Raheem Sterling was man-handled by an angry Liverpool fan in an ugly incident following the League Cup final on Sunday.
And with chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak running a gauntlet of abuse from opposition supporters as he arrived at the Wembley showpiece, the incidents tainted a joyous occasion for the Blues.
The most serious incident occurred as Sterling, along with the rest of the squad, made their way to an official toast to the winners, following their penalty shoot-out victory.
Sterling had been booed throughout the game by the 30,000 Liverpool fans, furious at his £44million move to the Etihad Stadium in the summer.
But that turned into a physical confrontation as Sterling prepared to enter one of the Wembley lounge to attend an official 15-minute function with club partners and staff following the game.
Feeling an arm round his shoulders, Sterling expected a friendly City fan or team-mate, but witnesses said that the arm then "yanked" him round and the fan said "You ****ing Judas!" to his face.
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Before shocked Sterling could react, fellow City player Kevin De Bruyne intervened, along with a security guard, and the two men were separated.
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It is not known how the Liverpool fan breached security to get to an area where accreditation was needed.
Sterling continued into the function, posing for photographs and greeting fans before leaving with the rest of the squad to catch a flight back to Manchester.
That followed an unpleasant moment before the game when the car carrying Blues chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak arrived at Wembley.
As he was heading for the doors, Khaldoon was subjected to verbal abuse which bordered on racism, one fan shouting "**** off back to Abu Dhabi!"