Following Manchester City’s historic triple at the weekend, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger honored Pep Guardiola.
Many have cited the £1.2 Billion the Citizens have spent on signings since Sheikh Mansour’s arrival 15 years ago, but according to Wenger, their current success is mostly down to who is in the dugout:
“I don’t consider it [in terms of the money] like that. Guardiola is a top-tier coach who has managed to stay at that level due of his talent. You need a top-notch coach and top-notch players together for success.
Wenger makes a really good argument here. A football game is ultimately between two teams of eleven players, and the manager’s influence is crucial to the outcome.
Guardiola will forever be remembered in history.
Having already won La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the Champions League with Barcelona back in 2009, the Spaniard is now the only manager to win trebles in two separate divisions.
Eight other managers—Jock Stein of Celtic (1966–67), Stefan Kovacs of Ajax (1971–72), Guus Hiddink of PSV (1987–88), Sir Alex Ferguson of Manchester United (1998–99), Jose Mourinho of Inter Milan (2009–10), Jupp Heynckes and Hansi Flick of Bayern Munich (2012–13 and 2019–20), and Luis Enrique of Barcelona (19–15)—have each won one treble.
Guardiola is now, however, in a class of his own, and who is to say that he won’t be able to repeat the feat in years to come?
A weight has been lifted on City
The victory at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul will be more of a relief than anything else for the club’s owners, players, and supporters after multiple failures to win the European Cup in previous years.
The squad has been under intense pressure to win their first Champions League championship, and now that it won, there will be some expectation that City can repeat the feat in the coming years.
