Manchester City may have had one of their best performances ever to reach the Champions League final. The Premier League is facing an uncomfortable reality. Although Pep Guardiola is City's manager, everyone else is playing for second place.
City will confirm a third title in a row if they beat Chelsea this weekend. Every logical pre-season prediction assumes that City will win four games in a row in 2024. Despite Arsenal's challenge this season, no one is close and it's hard to see who can close the gap over the summer break.
Rivals will say that there is one main reason for such superiority; The owner of the city is Sheikh Mansour. It sounds like an understatement to say that City's resources in Abu Dhabi are an important factor and a huge advantage.
This does not change the fact that what we see on the field is the merit of Guardiola. vision. He has built a side that consistently delivers quality we've never seen before, and the victory against Real Madrid was the latest in a series of breathtaking defeats by their archrivals.
City's post-training performance has been the most full, which I have seen among all football teams. The caliber of the opponent they tossed aside with such ease makes him all the more amazing.
Real Madrid were European champions. They were lucky they only conceded four. The same can be said for Arsenal, who were at the top of the league when they were jammed, and Liverpool, who despite a poor season have world-class players and were previously City's closest rivals in the Guardiola era. Bayern Munich were grateful to have lost at Etihad by just three.
I suggested last week that City's trip to Everton would be difficult. For any other title contender at this stage of the season, that would be the case. City walked up to three points without breaking a sweat. Looking at City this season, Guardiola seems to have been experimenting for six months, tweaking his formation with the arrival of Erling Haaland.
Erling Haaland has brought a new dimension to an already impressive team. Photo: Getty Images/Marc Atkins
They were good, but not in their usual free spirit. They've been out of this world for the last eight weeks, sticking to a formula that could lead them to European dominance this season and beyond.
If City complete the treble, this season will be the greatest ever. English club.
Guardiola won the treble in two different countries. By the end of his career, he will be the greatest coach of all time. Sir Alex Ferguson's success at Aberdeen, where he dealt a blow to the club by beating Real Madrid in the European final, means there will always be something Guardiola lacks on his resume.
Guardiola has thrived in rich and powerful clubs. That doesn't mean anyone can do what he's doing now.
He oversaw the transition as club legends Sergio Aguero, Vincent Kompany, Yaya Toure and David Silva left and the team got stronger.
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Tactics such as his use of John Stones as a centre-back/central midfield hybrid represent a football revolution. Previously, no central defender has moved from deep to center like he does now. You can't compare Stones' positioning a defender who occasionally uses space in the center circle to run forward with the ball.
This week on Monday Night Football, Gary Neville and I selected Manchester United's combined XI of treble winners and the incumbent side » City». It was a bit of fun, but it's interesting to note how many fans filled the squad with United players.
I firmly believe that world-class players would shine in any era, but City's level of play is incomparable to all the great English teams before them. Only the most blinkered and tribal would deny it. Anyone who does not think that the level of football in 2023 is much better is living in an alternate reality.
I know how such praise will be received.
Every compliment to City Football Club followed by a constant bombardment of social media posts of 115 allegations against them of alleged spending violations. People demand that experts like me beware of every positive comment with a negative reference to Financial Fair Play.
These requirements have grown over the past 12 months. Arsenal fans are feeling the way Liverpool did during their minor title defeats, and Manchester United have become more boisterous as their highs no longer seem to be unique.
Real Madrid's heavy defeat is likely to spark backlash on and off the pitch, with Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappé on the wanted list this summer. When one team dominates, there will always be a reaction from the opponents.
It doesn't change the fact that Guardiola's presence, in addition to financial backing, is what makes City so good. They were far from that level under Roberto Mancini or Manuel Pellegrini.
If it was all about money, Manchester United would not be so far behind in paying players more after Ferguson retired, and Paris Saint-Germain will show similar standard performances.
City and their supporters always counter that the criticism is rooted in envy and that it's «bad for football». dominated by one side did not generate as many complaints about Liverpool in the 1980s or Manchester United for most of the 1990s.
From 2004 to 2006, Chelsea won back-to-back titles after absorption by Roman 95 and 91 points. For a while it was a one-horse race.
However, there are significant differences now that raise concerns about competitiveness at the top of the league. While the responsibility for leveling up the game always rests with others, when a high-profile team emerges, the standards they have to achieve are unprecedented.
Until the last few years, a traditional top-six team could start the season believing they could break the pack with the help of a good coach and recruiter, get enough wins to score 80-plus points and at least guarantee a title challenge.
That has changed.
Between 2007 and 2017, the Premier League champions once scored 90 points.
City's combined points total in three of their last four wins is 100.98, and 93. This time they are on their way to 94 points.
Runner-ups recruited in those years scored 81, 97 and 92 points. This time, Arsenal could still score 88 points. This is an incredible result for a team that has spent the past week branded as 'underdogs'.
Whether it's Arsenal this season or Liverpool in the two years they've just lost. , we need to rethink the idea that the side is «bogged down». or 'miss your chance' because they can't keep up with a stronger, better-resourced squad led by a better coach.
The story of the 2022-23 season is not the story of Arsenal's failure. Whatever form it is taken, history is what City have done and continue to do to prolong their dominance.
Such levels are not normal and for most clubs are far beyond what is possible. With their huge purchasing power under the leadership of a genius leading brilliant players, City will not stop.
What can the rest of us hope for? Just that Guardiola won't be there forever, eras eventually come to an end and the game evolves so new contenders emerge. a season of 38 games like no other team.
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