Aleks Kolarov says he and Edin Dzeko celebrated City’s title triumph before Roma’s Serie A derby with Lazio.

The Serbia international spent seven years with the Blues, winning six trophies and playing 247 games during a memorable spell with the Club.

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Kolarov, who says he has nothing but happy memories of his time in Manchester said: “Winning the title still means a lot to me because I was part of the City family for the last seven years and I still feel part of it, even though I am now with Roma.

“Before we played Lazio on Sunday, I was following the United game along with Edin and when they lost, we were both so happy.

“For me, I was happy as if I was part of it, so it means as much to me as it does to the players, Pep the staff and the City supporters.

“Obviously, if you are on the pitch when it happens, you can enjoy it more, but it doesn’t matter that much because it is the result of the many games you have played rather than one moment.

“Of course, I knew we would win the title before Christmas, so this was just the confirmation of the inevitable – it was just a little unlucky we didn’t do it again United.

“I can’t recall a team dominating a domestic competition like the Premier League like us – and I say ‘us’, because I still feel part of everything.

“I tried to call Vinnie after the game, but I think he was busy celebrating so I’ll try again this evening – they are all probably busy answering hundreds of messages.

“I was sure last season that we were going to win everything and even now, it’s just a question of time before City win the Champions League.”

Kolarov, who gained a cult following among City fans for his deadpan YouTube Christmas videos, joined Roma last summer and has played a key role in helping the Italian side to the Champions League semi-final where they will face Liverpool.

He says he was close to Pep Guardiola during their one season together where he made 40 appearances, some at centre-back as part of a back three.

He said: “Pep is unbelievable, and I am so happy for him because we had a great relationship – even more than just coach and player – and I knew how disappointed he was last season, but I knew it wouldn’t take him long to get things right.

“It would have been a huge thing for Edin and myself to have returned to the Etihad with Roma and I thought City would beat Liverpool, but now we have the chance – as former City players – to get some kind of revenge!

“We’ll be trying our best. We’ve had plenty of messages from City fans asking us to do that and we’ll be trying our best, I can assure you of that.