‘What a story! Mikheil Kavelashvili, on his debut, in a Manchester derby! It’s a long name to splash across a Manchester City shirt but it will be splashed across a few headlines if City go on from this.’ Martin Tyler, Sky Sports commentary, April 6, 1996Our conversation was a little unexpected. If you know much about the guy with the long name, you will probably understand why.It was a fortnight ago that Daily Mail Sport took a punt, which meant sending an email to a generic media address in the Georgian parliament. The gist: would Mikheil Kavelashvili fancy a chat?Again, if you know, you know. If you don’t, then this one is rather interesting – Kavelashvili played 28 games for Manchester City in an earlier time in his life and for the past 21 months has operated in a different line of work. He is the disputed president of Georgia. Reaching him would likely be a non-starter.But 18 hours later, a reply came back from the people who handle his affairs and they wanted to know our area of interest, so I explained: Maine Road, April 1996, Manchester City 2 Manchester United 3.It was Kavelashvili’s debut and after Eric Cantona tucked away a penalty for 1-0, City’s new striker stepped on to a Niall Quinn knock-down and poked past Peter Schmeichel to level. City lost the game, before long they had lost their place in the Premier League, too, and Kavelashvili’s headlines didn’t materialise. Soon enough, he was on loan to Grasshoppers in Switzerland. Mikheil Kavelashvili, the disputed president of Georgia, during his swearing-in ceremony in 2024 And Kavelashvili back in his footballing days when he had a spell with a struggling Manchester City in the late 1990sA few more messages came and went on this theme and curiosity from the other end shaped into an indirect ‘yes’ – the president wouldn’t take a phone call but might answer our questions in writing.After a week of silence, they arrived on Wednesday morning. On Sunday, United and City will contest the 199th Manchester derby at Old Trafford.Somewhere in Georgia, a 55-year-old who played in the 135th will be aware of how that all goes. Today, he is depicted as an anti-West hardliner of the right and his election to the presidency in 2024 has been rejected by political opposition and the European Parliament. It’s a serious debate in the real world. But it turns out he still follows the goings-on in his other life. And, surprisingly, he was open to discussing the way it was, meaning he still believes City deserved a draw three decades ago. He still reckons he could have done more to save City from relegation. And he can also see a comparison between one of his many City managers, Frank Clark, and Margaret Thatcher.Football. You never quite know where it’s going to lead.The Manchester City of 1996 was somewhat different to the one of 2026. Kavelashvili arrived into the chaotic landscape of Alan Ball’s squad in the March, following a prolonged campaign of recommendations from the better-known Georgian at Maine Road, the great Georgi Kinkladze. Aged 24, Kavelashvili signed for £1.4million from the Russian champions Spartak Vladikavkaz. Kavelashvili celebrates his goal at Maine Road which briefly levelled the Manchester derby in April 1996 ‘I remember him as a warm, nice fella,’ Quinn (right) says. ‘We called him Kav. There was a lot going on at the club, things were tense, but he was one of those forwards who worked hard’‘My move to Manchester City was preceded by a match I played in Wales as part of the Georgian national team, which we won, and by winning the Russian championship, where I also became the team’s top scorer,’ Kavelashvili tells me.‘Of course, Gio’s recommendation also played a very significant role. Before signing the contract, the club’s president, Francis Lee, told me that the idea behind my move was to build, in the future, a team around Giorgi Kinkladze that would play more creative football. This was a very interesting project for me.‘In addition to all of this, I was deeply impressed by the fans’ attitude. I saw in them that special passion and emotion which, in my view, are eternal and unaffected by the passing of generations.‘Gio had told me a great deal about all of this before, but what I witnessed with my own eyes exceeded all my expectations. I would like to thank the fans and the club itself for the emotions they gave me. I am certain (they) will stay with me for the rest of my life.’All of that being said, City were in dire trouble. When Kavelashvili signed, they were three points above the relegation zone and their striker, the cult hero Uwe Rosler, had engaged in open rebellion against Ball. For the Manchester derby, the German was abruptly dropped and the new guy was thrown in for his debut alongside Quinn.‘I remember him as a warm, nice fella,’ Quinn tells me this week. ‘We called him Kav. There was a lot going on at the club, things were tense, but he came in and was one of those forwards who worked hard.‘He wouldn’t wait with hands on hips – he’d do his own running and he had his moment against United.’ Alan Ball’s Manchester City was a very different animal to today’s club Kavelashvili was given his chance after Ball fell out with City’s German striker Uwe Rosler (pictured)How much did that goal change the path of Kavelashvili’s life? Given the profile of the Premier League and a Manchester derby, was it in some way tied to a political party utilising him years later as a recognisable face? It’s impossible to know and interesting to ponder.Naturally, Kavelashvili remembers the game against United, who were a nose ahead of Newcastle United at the top of the table, with Sir Alex Ferguson three weeks shy of baiting Kevin Keegan into his ‘I will love it…’ speech.‘In a match like this, the positions occupied by the teams in the league table are virtually irrelevant,’ Kavelashvili says. ‘The fans create an atmosphere that makes it feel as though you are playing in a tournament final. An unforgettable experience.‘Manchester United at the time were one of the best teams in Europe. Nevertheless, we genuinely believed that we could do it.’Martin Tyler’s commentary suggested Kavelashvili’s goal for 1-1 would make the headlines, but City were only level for one minute before Andy Cole got United’s second. Kavelashvili had another excellent chance, but Schmeichel blocked the drive with his face, and the Georgian was then substituted for Rosler.The latter’s subsequent equaliser became iconic for the manner in which he celebrated – he ran towards Ball and wagged his finger. Rosler, who had only learned he was on the bench when he saw Kavelashvili’s shirt hanging in the dressing room, then opened the chasm further when he told Match of the Day that there was a ‘massive problem’ with the manager. By then, Ryan Giggs had scored the winner and City were in the bottom three.‘In my view, we should at least not have lost the match, as it was an evenly contested game overall and we had several opportunities to score, including a chance for me,’ Kavelashvili says. ‘We made several costly mistakes and were punished. Given the way the match unfolded, I believe a draw would have been a fairer result.‘As for my goal, scoring in a derby of this magnitude, especially in my debut match, was, of course, a tremendous source of joy. Unfortunately, however, the result of the match somewhat overshadowed that joy.’ Kavelashvili takes on Steve Bruce in the Manchester Derby in 1996 Kavelashvili arrived at City following a prolonged campaign of recommendations from the better-known Georgian at Maine Road, the great Georgi Kinkladze (pictured)The farce of City’s season was encapsulated by the final day, when they faced Liverpool. In the dying seconds, at 2-2, Ball mistakenly believed a draw would keep his side safe due to scores elsewhere, so there was a directive to get the ball to the corner. It was only when the injured Quinn came sprinting out of the physio room and waving his arms for the team to attack that anyone realised they were dawdling towards their own demise.His team-mate Keith Curle had another observation. ‘Kav missed a sitter in that game!’ he tells me.Kavelashvili would go on to play 24 games for City in the second tier the next season, scoring two more goals, before being loaned out to Switzerland in 1997 and sold in 1999. He appears to hold some regrets.‘As my contract was signed towards the end of the season, I joined the team only four or five matches before the end of the championship,’ he says. ‘By that point, the team’s main objective was already to avoid relegation.‘This may also have influenced the coach to place greater trust in players he knew well and with whom he had previous experience of working. This is entirely understandable. However, I believe that, had I been given a little more confidence, I could have contributed more to the team. Incidentally, Gary Lineker expressed a similar view at the time.’ Quinn is succinct in describing his reaction to the events of December 2024, when he heard a former team-mate had become the head of state in Georgia after spending eight years as a member of the county’s parliament. Having left England in 1999 and retired in 2006, Kavelashvili’s name had barely been uttered in our native footballing circles.‘Jeez, that was a surprise!’ says Quinn. ‘Didn’t see that coming, if I’m honest.’ He likely spoke for the rest of the City dressing room.Around the time of that 2024 election, Clark, who managed Kavelashvili during the 1996-97 season, told The Athletic: ‘Good luck to him, if he is going to be dealing with Putin, although he might find Putin is easier to deal with than I was. I am joking of course… I hope I am a nicer person than Putin.’ The former City player Keith Curle remembers ‘Kav’ well and particularly the final game of the season which saw City relegated. ‘Kav missed a sitter in that game!’ he says I redirect that thought to Kavelashvili, who says: ‘As I understood it, Frank Clark’s joke was a reference to his own steadfastness and adherence to principle. However, in politics, the ability to find compromises is no less important.‘If he wanted to compare himself specifically to a politician, I would have found it more natural for him to draw a comparison with a British politician, such as Winston Churchill or Margaret Thatcher. ‘They had very clear principles, but they also had to make difficult decisions in the complex world of politics and, when necessary, find compromises.’For those who follow Georgian politics, Clark’s comment about Putin might chime in ways the former manager did not intend. Kavelashvili’s stance on neighbouring Russia has been accused by critics of being sympathetic – a point he has previously denied – and that sits alongside furious, ongoing opposition to his ascension to power with the Georgian Dream party. The European Parliament said in 2025 that it ‘refuses to recognise the self-proclaimed authorities of the ruling Georgian Dream party following the rigged parliamentary elections’.As headlines they are heaven and earth removed from what Tyler had in mind when he reported on a football match. That fixture may or may not have been a sliding-door moment for Kavelashvili. And for Georgia, as a whole.As for Kavelashvili, he traces his involvement in politics to an ‘injustice’ more than a decade ago, when he felt football in his country was being hijacked for ‘political objectives’. After speaking out, he says he found himself in the political arena.That journey has followed a surreal and contentious direction. So have Manchester City, in their way. ‘As someone who once had a connection with the club, [City’s recent success] makes me very happy,’ Kavelashvili saysFor his part, Kavelashvili has kept an eye on a club whose subsequent success bears no resemblance to the one he represented. ‘As someone who once had a connection with the club, this makes me very happy,’ he says.Returning to the theme of Ball and Francis Lee, he adds: ‘Their vision was based on developing a more creative style. It is worth noting that, at the time, relatively few teams had such a vision. It was during those years that Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool were beginning to develop a similar approach.‘Unfortunately, at that point, Manchester City found itself in a situation that made it very difficult to fully implement these ideas. However, today, when I look at what City has become, I can see that Alan Ball and Francis Lee were the first to attempt to introduce this football philosophy at the club.’It’s an interesting theory. Along with a few other things, it might also be vulnerable to dispute.