City's final act for The Goat

Manchester City supporters will be bidding more than one emotional farewell when their team play their last-ever match at Maine Road, against Southampton today. City are preparing to move to the Commonwealth Games stadium in Eastlands, but Shaun Goater, the Bermudan striker in whose honour the cult terrace chant "Feed the Goat" was spawned, will be leaving the club after six years, 198 appearances and 104 goals.

Manchester City supporters will be bidding more than one emotional farewell when their team play their last-ever match at Maine Road, against Southampton today. City are preparing to move to the Commonwealth Games stadium in Eastlands, but Shaun Goater, the Bermudan striker in whose honour the cult terrace chant "Feed the Goat" was spawned, will be leaving the club after six years, 198 appearances and 104 goals.

Goater, whose goals helped City bounce back from their darkest hour in the Second Division, will sign off by leading the team out as captain and says he has been "overwhelmed" by the fans' reaction to his decision to leave.

"It's been a difficult week but I do feel very proud," he said. "Over the last six years I have become a fan of the club, so it wasn't easy to say I want to go. But the response has been overwhelming. There have been so many people wanting shirts to be signed, waiting for autographs or just wanting to chat. They've been hugging me and telling me they'll watch me play for my next team."

Two other City players will also be making their final appearances for the club. The veteran goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel is retiring, while Marc-Vivien Foé, the Cameroon midfielder, will return to Lyon in the summer with City unwilling to pay the £7m fee to sign him permanently.

The biggest tear-jerker of all will be the end of 80 years of Maine Road history, which ensures Goater a memorable exit. "The atmosphere will be really special," he said. "I don't think you would be able to forget it if you wanted to. I've had some really good times with City, but Sunday will rank alongside any of it."