Twenty-four years ago, Manchester City watched on from the third tier of English football as their bitter rivals Manchester United became the first English club to win the continental treble. Fast-forward to the present day and the Citizens are celebrating a historic trophy triple of their own.
Having endured many years in the shadow of their Red Devil foes, the tables have well and truly turned as the Sky Blues proudly puff out their chests in the upper echelons of English and European football after winning the Premier League, FA Cup and their first-ever Champions League.
It was all part of Pep Guardiola's masterplan, the Catalan conductor behind a well-organised and exceptionally talented orchestra who have blessed the Etihad Stadium faithful with memories that they will cherish forever.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look back at Manchester City's historic treble-winning 2022-23 campaign.
SEASON OVERVIEW
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Final league position: 1st
EFL Cup: Quarter-finals
FA Cup: Winners
Champions League: Winners
Top scorer: Erling Braut Haaland (52)
Most assists: Kevin De Bruyne (29)
A year on from spending £100m on the signing of Jack Grealish, Man City forked out just over half that to activate the release clause of Borussia Dortmund's highly-coveted striker Erling Braut Haaland. Kalvin Phillips, Manuel Akanji, Sergio Gomez and Stefan Ortega also arrived at the Etihad, while Julian Alvarez linked up with this new teammates for the first time since signing in January.
Unlike in previous years, the Citizens made a net profit last summer as Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Raheem Sterling were all allowed to seek pastures new – the former two joining Mikel Arteta's Arsenal and the latter signing for Chelsea – while a number of fringe and academy prospects also departed permanently, including Pedro Porro – now at Tottenham Hotspur – to Sporting Lisbon, as well as Romeo Lavia, Gavin Bazunu and Sam Edozie to Southampton. City also bid farewell to long-serving midfielder Fernandinho, with Ilkay Gundogan appointed as the club's new captain.
The headlines at the beginning of City's season were unsurprisingly focused on the introduction of Haaland, who immediately hit the ground running and scored just 12 minutes into his Citizens debut, netting the only goal in a 1-0 pre-season friendly win over Bayern Munich. However, the Norwegian was unable to stamp his mark in a 3-1 Community Shield loss to Liverpool.
Defeat to last season's title rivals was quickly put to one side as Guardiola's men picked up 13 points from their opening five Premier League matches, two fewer than early pacesetters Arsenal at the summit. Haaland remarkably scored nine goals in this period – a Premier League record – including a brace on his top-flight debut against West Ham United on the opening weekend and back-to-back home hat-tricks in 4-2 and 6-0 victories over Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest respectively. Alvarez also shone against the latter on his full debut with his first two league goals, but it was the Norwegian who scooped the Player of the Month award for August.
Indeed, Haaland's early contributions were enormous to City to say the least, as he netted 19 goals in his first 13 matches in all competitions. The 22-year-old scored five goals in the Citizens' opening three Champions League group-stage matches, including a memorable acrobatic match-winner against former club Dortmund to help Guardiola's side make a strong start to Group G. Following a 15-day break from competitive action after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, City then recorded a memorable 6-3 derby triumph over Man United at the Etihad in early October courtesy of two hat-tricks from Haaland and local lad Phil Foden.
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Thirteen points were separating Man City in second and Liverpool languishing in 10th place when the two teams locked horns at Anfield, but it was the latter who condemned the reigning champions to their first Premier League defeat of the season, ending their 21-game unbeaten top-flight run in the process, with Mohamed Salah scoring the only goal in a slender 1-0 win. The Citizens responded well, though, with five victories in their next six games in all tournaments.
A goalless draw at Dortmund secured top spot in their Champions League group with a game to spare, while a 2-0 win over Chelsea helped City advance from the third round of the EFL Cup. However, Guardiola's side suffered a shock 2-1 home loss to Brentford in their final match before the World Cup break, allowing Arsenal to move five points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
Man City used the month-long international break to end any doubts about Guardiola's future, with the Catalan boss penning a two-year contract extension at the Etihad until 2025 to the delight of every Citizens supporter. The controversially scheduled mid-season World Cup saw a Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina triumph in Qatar, with City's new recruit Alvarez coming away with a winners medal after excelling with four goals in seven matches, including a brace in a crucial semi-final victory over Croatia.
The Citizens resumed their campaign with an enthralling 3-2 EFL Cup fourth-round win over Liverpool and a 3-1 top-flight victory at Leeds United, but they missed the chance to close the gap to leaders Arsenal after being held to a 1-1 home draw by relegation-threatened Everton, allowing the Gunners to end 2022 with a seven-point lead at the summit.
Guardiola and co kick-started the New Year with back-to-back wins over Chelsea, following up a 1-0 Premier League away victory with a thumping 4-0 home success in the FA Cup third round. However, a much-rotated City side suffered a disappointing 2-0 defeat at Southampton in the EFL Cup quarter-finals – Nathan Jones ultimately the man preventing the Citizens from winning the quadruple – three days before losing 2-1 to Man United at Old Trafford courtesy of a controversial equaliser amid a quickfire late comeback from the hosts, leaving the Sky Blues eight points adrift of table-toppers Arsenal.
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A surprise turn of events at the end of January saw Joao Cancelo, who had lost his regular starting place under Guardiola after the World Cup, join Bayern Munich on loan until the end of the season. The full-back's departure coincided with Nathan Ake's rapid rise as an integral member of Guardiola's side as well as the emergence of teenage academy graduate Rico Lewis.
As Man City embarked on a hectic fixture schedule across three competitions, the club were rocked by the news of being charged with 115 alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules following a four-year investigation relating to sponsorship income, revenue and operating costs – allegations that the Citizens emphatically deny.
The threats of heavy fines, points deductions and even Premier League expulsion were all suggested as possible punishments should City be found guilty by an independent commission, with fellow top-flight clubs allegedly in favour of the latter. Rival fans will indeed place a bold asterisk above City's trophy triumphs until a verdict is published. Nevertheless, in a time of severe unrest and uncertainty, Guardiola restored order and steadied the Sky Blue ship, insisting that he was more committed that ever to manage the Citizens and is "fully convinced" the club are innocent.
The Catalan's defiant demeanour was passed onto his players who then put together an exceptional 25-game unbeaten run in all tournaments across a four-and-a-half-month period, which began with successive 3-1 Premier League wins over Aston Villa and Arsenal. Goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Grealish and Haaland helped City claim three crucial points against the latter at the Emirates Stadium to usurp their title rivals and climb to the Premier League summit, albeit having played a game more.
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Man City marched into the FA Cup semi-finals courtesy of comfortable victories over Championship duo Bristol City and Vincent Kompany's Burnley in the fifth round and quarter-finals by an aggregate score of 9-0. Indeed, goal machine Haaland scored a hat-trick against the latter just four days before netting five in a thumping 7-0 second-leg win over RB Leipzig in the Champions League last 16, moving onto 39 goals in all tournaments and breaking a 94-year club record set by Tommy Johnson to become City's highest-ever goalscorer in a single season.
The in-form Citizens then regrouped after an international break and hit four past both Liverpool and Southampton before, recording an impressive 4-1 aggregate victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals, with a comprehensive 3-0 first-leg win at the Etihad arguably one of their performances of the season.
City completed the month of April with three significant results, firstly beating Sheffield United 3-0 in the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley courtesy of a superb Riyad Mahrez hat-trick, before a scintillating display in a 4-1 top-of-the-table win over Arsenal helped Guardiola's side seize control of the Premier League title race, moving to within two points of the top with two games in hand. City eventually climbed to the summit with a 2-1 win at Fulham in which Haaland became the first English top-flight player to score 50 goals across all competitions in a single season since Tom 'Pongo' Waring 92 years ago.
The records continued to tumble for Haaland as he became the first-ever Premier League player to score 35 goals in a single season, surpassing both Alan Shearer (34 goals in 1994-95) and Andy Cole (34 goals in 1993-94), with a strike in the 3-0 win over West Ham United in May. The Norwegian's form in front of goal somewhat dried up towards the end of the campaign, but Guardiola had other stars among his ranks to step up, none more so than perennial end-of-season specialist Gundogan, who scored four goals in two Premier League wins against Leeds and Everton to put City on the brink of clinching the title.
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Victory over Everton was sandwiched between City's Champions League semi-final tie with holders Real Madrid. Following a 1-1 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu, City brushed aside the team that eliminated them at this stage in heartbreaking fashion 12 months ago as they recorded an utterly dominant 4-0 second-leg triumph to book their ticket to the showpiece event in Istanbul.
With City breathing down their necks, Arsenal ultimately buckled under the pressure to hold onto their lead at the top of the Premier League, and after a very promising campaign, a calamitous conclusion ended their title hopes. Indeed, just two league wins in seven were recorded before a disappointing 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest handed Guardiola's men their third successive top-flight crown without kicking a ball. City then lifted the Premier League trophy in front of a jubilant Etihad crowd after a 1-0 win over Chelsea a day later.
With one eye on two huge finals, Guardiola's much-rotated Citizens side failed to beat either Brighton or Brentford in their final two league games, but they were unfazed by that temporary blip heading to Wembley and came out on top in the first-ever Manchester derby FA Cup final with a 2-1 win over Erik ten Hag's side, courtesy of two long-range volleys from captain marvel Ilkay Gundogan, including a record-breaking 12-second opener.
After lifting two domestic honours, the final hurdle for Man City was to end their painful wait to claim an elusive Champions League trophy, the one piece of silverware required for them to enter the conversation as one of the greatest teams to have ever graced the beautiful game. Starting his 52nd game of the season, midfield maestro Rodri broke the deadlock with a sweet strike on the 68-minute mark, before City saw out a nervy final 20 minutes – watching an Inter effort cannon off the crossbar and Ederson make two fine saves in the dying embers – to clinch European glory and etch their name into football folklore as just the second-ever treble winners from England.
PREMIER LEAGUE STATS
Wins: 28 (1st)
Draws: 5 (20th)
Losses: 5 (=19th)
Goals scored: 94 (1st)
Goals conceded: 33 (=19th)
Yellow cards: 44 (=19th)
Red cards: 1 (=10th)
Passes: 25,071 (1st)
Shots: 600 (3rd)
Big chances missed: 69 (=3rd)
Saves: 60 (20th)
Tackles: 469 (20th)
Own goals: 1 (=12th)
Hit woodwork: 19 (4th)
Clearances: 391 (20th)
HOW DID IT COMPARE TO LAST SEASON?
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Man City won their second successive Premier League title by just a point last season having been taken to the final day by Liverpool. A dramatic 3-2 comeback win over Aston Villa ensured that the Citizens finished on 93 points, with 29 wins, six draws and just three defeats in 38 games.
In contrast, Guardiola's side finished with four fewer points in 2022-23, winning 28, drawing five and losing five of their 38 matches, while they also scored slightly fewer and conceded slightly more goals. Nevertheless, they won the title for the third year in a row, this time with three games to spare. Arsenal remarkably spent 248 days out of a possible 296 sitting at the top of the table, but City's title-race experience and supreme quality helped to knock the Gunners off their perch in the closing stages.
The Citizens lost three more games and picked up nine fewer points away from home this season compared to last year, but they improved their efforts at the Etihad, accumulating five more points and boasting an impressive record of 17 wins from 19 home matches, scoring a league-high 60 goals in the process.
The Premier League was the only trophy that Man City managed to get their hands on last season as they fell short in the Community Shield, EFL Cup, FA Cup and Champions League. After losing 1-0 to Leicester City in the 2021-22 Community Shield, Guardiola's men had to settle for a runners-up medal again this term courtesy of a 3-1 defeat against Liverpool.
A quarter-final exit to Southampton in the EFL Cup was a disappointing result but a marginal improvement on 2021-22, where they lost on penalties to West Ham in the fourth round. City, meanwhile, suffered their third consecutive FA Cup semi-final elimination when they lost 3-2 to Liverpool last season, but they managed to go all the way this term and claim a famous 2-1 victory in the final against rivals Man United to lift the prestigious trophy for a seventh time.
Twelve months on from suffering a painful 6-5 aggregate defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals, Man City got their revenge over the 14-time champions with an emphatic 5-1 aggregate triumph at the same stage this season, before Guardiola and co claimed the holy grail that they had craved for so long with a slender 1-0 win over Inter Milan in the final.
PLAYER OF THE SEASON: ERLING BRAUT HAALAND
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Who else? Erling Braut Haaland arrived at the Etihad last summer having already built a reputation as a goal machine in his native Norway, Austria and Germany, but even he has been left "surprised" by the levels reached with Man City in a truly extraordinary record-breaking debut campaign.
While a number of Pep Guardiola signings have needed a year or so to settle into life under the Catalan boss, Haaland has taken to English football like a duck to water, scoring a record 36 goals in just 35 Premier League matches to claim the Golden Boot award – finishing 13 goals clear of last season's joint-top scorers Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-min.
The Norwegian also chipped in with four goals across the domestic cups and 12 strikes in 11 Champions League matches – more than any other player – taking his mind-boggling goal tally across all competitions to 52 in 53 games.
Man City managed to score plenty of goals without a natural striker last season, but the presence of Haaland in attack has taken Guardiola's side to another level. Fans, teammates and pundits have waxed lyrical about his instinctive movement in and around the penalty box and his ability to stamp his mark on matches with so few touches of the ball.
At the age of just 22, Haaland is the first player in Premier League history to win the Player & Young Player of the Season awards in the same campaign, while he also received two Player of the Month accolades and has been named the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year. Another electric start to next season will surely see City's No.9 emerge as a strong contender to win the 2023 Ballon d'Or, although World Cup winner Messi will provide stern competition.
The Scandinavian sensation deserves all the plaudits that come his way, but there were also plenty of other standout performers within City's ranks. Indeed, playmaker Kevin De Bruyne had another excellent campaign with 29 assists – more than any other player in Europe – and John Stones elevated his game to new heights after adopting a hybrid midfield role alongside another top performer Rodri, while Nathan Ake enjoyed his breakthrough year as a first-team regular.
STANDOUT RESULT: MANCHESTER CITY 1-0 INTER MILAN
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Beating their fiercest rivals in arguably the biggest-ever Manchester derby to win the FA Cup final is undoubtedly one of the highlights of Man City's season, as was the emphatic 4-0 second-leg success over Champions League holders Real Madrid, but beating Inter Milan to win the competition that has eluded them for so long and complete a historic treble has to be the standout result of their 2022-23 season.
Guardiola's side were regarded as firm favourites to come out on top against an Inter side who few would have envisaged reaching the Champions League showpiece event at the start of the campaign. However, the Nerazzurri were not to be underestimated and proved on the night that they were capable of causing problems to City's backline.
The loss of Kevin De Bruyne due to injury midway through the first half was a bitter blow for City, but as the closely-fought contest approached midnight local time at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Turkey, the deadlock was broken in the 68th minute when Rodri – who was controversially dropped for the 2021 Champions League final – curled a composed side-footed shot from around 15 yards out into the corner to spark pandemonium among the Citizens supporters behind the goal.
City's faith was tested when Federico Dimarco looped a header onto the crossbar just three minutes later before a close-range header from substitute Romelu Lukaku somehow ricocheted off the knee of Ederson shortly after Phil Foden was denied at the other end by Andre Onana.
Ederson swatted away one final chance for Inter deep into stoppage time before the full-time whistle sparked scenes of ecstasy as the entire City bench ran on the pitch to join the on-field 11 in celebrating their European glory with the fortunate Citizens fans who witnessed the greatest night in the club's history.
> Click here for a full list of Manchester City's results from the 2022-23 season
BEST MOMENT
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Man City have experienced a love-hate relationship with the Champions League since qualifying for the first time in 2011. Roberto Mancini failed to guide the Citizens out of the group stage before Manuel Pellegrini progressed as far as the semi-finals, and there have since been plenty of highs and lows in Europe's premier club competition under the tutelage of Guardiola.
Indeed, VAR heartache in a quarter-final defeat to Tottenham in 2019 was followed two years later by a narrow 1-0 loss against Chelsea in their first-ever final, before Real Madrid stunned the Citizens with a remarkable semi-final comeback at the Bernabeu last season. However, Guardiola's side learnt from those setbacks and came back much stronger to finally push themselves over the line of sporting immortality.
Fifty-three years on from club legend Tony Book lifting the Cup Winners' Cup, captain Ilkay Gundogan had the honours of holding up Man City's first-ever Champions League trophy, with the Blue Moon out in its full glory to mark the greatest moment in the club's 129-year history, watched on by owner Sheikh Mansour who was in attendance for just his second game since his consortium bought the club in 2008.
Rodri's match-winner against Inter ranks alongside Sergio Aguero's dramatic 2011-12 title-winning strike as one of City's most important goals, while the entire Citizens squad have written their names in the history books as treble winners, a remarkable feat that will unite this closely-knit group forever.
In the words of Noel Gallagher, "The Manchester rain will taste like champagne" when the City squad reunite with the club's supporters to celebrate their treble success in an open-top bus parade throughout the streets of Manchester on Monday.
TOP PRIORITY FOR SUMMER
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Following a near-perfect 2022-23 campaign, can Man City raise their levels again? Can they maintain their domestic dominance and endeavour to win back-to-back Champions League titles? Can they even create further history by winning an unprecedented quadruple? The ultimate goal for Guardiola is to sustain the hunger within his talented group to ensure that they are ready to go again and strive for more success.
It remains to be seen how many of those star names will continue at the Etihad next season, though. Ilkay Gundogan – Guardiola's first signing as City manager in 2016 – is out of contract this summer and is yet to make a final decision on his future, with the likes of Barcelona, Arsenal and Saudi Arabian clubs all said to be interested in his services.
Aymeric Laporte may look to depart after falling down the pecking order this season, while Joao Cancelo has seemingly played his final game for City, who are expected to cash in on the full-back this summer and pursue a replacement. Backup goalkeeper Zack Steffen has publicly admitted that he has "no plans" to return to the Etihad when his loan spell at Middlesbrough expires and he is likely to be sold, and Bernardo Silva is another facing an uncertain future at the club having previously expressed his desire to seek pastures new.
The potential departure of both Bernardo and Gundogan would be a significant blow to City, and replacing the midfield duo could prove challenging, especially with Jude Bellingham now on his way to Real Madrid and Arsenal allegedly leading the race for Declan Rice. Chelsea's Mateo Kovacic has been strongly linked with a move to the Etihad, and it would be intriguing to see how the 29-year-old Croatian would fit into Guardiola's system.
While Haaland, Alvarez and Akanji all impressed in their debut campaigns at the Etihad, Kalvin Phillips struggled for first-team football, starting just four of his 22 appearances in all competitions. Injuries played their part, but the England international will hope to have a greater impact in Guardiola's side next season, whether that be rivalling Rodri or playing alongside him in the middle of the pitch.
Man City also have decisions to make regarding a number of academy prospects who spent time on loan last season. James McAtee and Tommy Doyle both impressed with newly-promoted Sheffield United and may look to remain at Bramall Lane on a temporary basis to gain both Premier League experience and regular first-team football.
The likes of Taylor Harwood-Bellis, James Trafford, Callum Doyle, Josh Wilson-Esbrand, Morgan Rodgers and Liam Delap were also on loan at clubs across the EFL and may be sent out on temporary deals again to gain another year of first-team experience. Carlos Borges and Shea Charles, meanwhile, both excelled for City's academy side last season and are likely to be assessed by Guardiola in pre-season before a decision is made on their first-team futures.
FINAL VERDICT
Man City have gone from strength to strength under Pep Guardiola, arguably the greatest manager of all time, who has now won 14 trophies during his seven-year tenure and has established the Citizens as the best club side in world football.
Securing a Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League treble is no mean feat, especially after beating three so-called Big Six teams to win the FA Cup and putting both Bayern and Real Madrid to the sword en route to European glory.
The ability to dominate the football landscape with an aesthetically pleasing brand of football is a sight to behold for Man City fans, and their club have now earned the right to be ranked among the greatest teams, boasting all the resources to continue their supremacy at the top of English and European football.
The sooner taht the independent commission publishes their verdict on City's alleged financial breaches the better, but nevertheless, Manchester is well and truly blue and they are the team to beat heading into the 2023-24 campaign.
Oliver Thomas
