Three matches decide the treble of Man City
The first title Man City can win this season is the Premier League. They currently lead with 85 points, four points ahead of Arsenal and will officially take the throne if they beat Chelsea in the penultimate round at Etihad this weekend, Sunday 21/5.
If they do not win, Guardiola's teachers and students will look for opportunities in the round of 32 match at Brighton Stadium on May 24, or the closing round at Brentford on May 28.
The match against Chelsea in round 37 this weekend is an opportunity for Man City to take the throne and celebrate the title in front of the home audience. If they win against the opponent from London, they will win the Premier League three years in a row, and win this title for the fifth time in just six seasons under coach Guardiola.
After that, Man City will play the same city club Man Utd in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium on June 3. The two teams have met twice in the Premier League this season, with Man City winning 6-3 at home in the first leg and then losing 1-2 at Old Trafford.
Finally, Man City will close the season with the Champions League final against Inter at Ataturk Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey on June 10. In the semi-finals, Man City defeated Real with a total score of 5-1, including a 4-0 thrashing in the second leg at the Etihad.
Guardiola was proud when Man City showed bravery and calm to overcome the pain of losing to Real in the semi-final second leg of the Champions League last season. The Spanish coach emphasized that Man City needs to decide the Premier League soon to have more time to prepare for two important matches against Man Utd and Inter.
If they win all three arenas, Man City will repeat the feat of winning the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League of Man Utd in the 1998-1999 season. In particular, the most memorable was the Champions League title when Man Utd defeated Bayern in the final at Camp Nou, thanks to two goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in three minutes of injury time.
Guardiola admitted his students are "thinking and envisioning" about the treble, and is "confident" that Man City can fulfill this dream. The 52-year-old coach added: "We are one match away from the Premier League title, the FA Cup, have reached the final twice, once in the Champions League semi-finals in the last three seasons. The level of the team is impossible. It's hard to believe what Man City has done in the modern era of football."
Guardiola arrived at Man City in 2016 and won every domestic title, including four Premier Leagues, one FA Cup, four League Cups, and two English Super Cups. However, they have yet to win the Champions League. Man City's best performance in this arena is the final in 2021, where they lost to Chelsea 0-1 because of Kai Havertz's only goal.
In the 2018-2019 season, Man City became the first English club to win three domestic titles at the same time in a season including the League Cup, Premier League and FA Cup. They beat Chelsea 4-3 in the penalty shootout in the League Cup final, won the Premier League with 98 points, one point ahead of Liverpool and crushed Watford 6-0 in the FA Cup final. Guardiola's team also won the English Super Cup when they beat Chelsea 2-0 thanks to a brace from Sergio Aguero. In the Champions League, Man City stopped in the quarterfinals when losing to Tottenham with a total score of 3-4.
