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Comparing Man City’s record to Man Utd’s treble winners at same stage

Manchester United made history in 1999 by becoming the first-ever English side to win the elusive treble, but their noisy neighbours from down the road might be about to match this impressive feat.

Of course, we are talking about the treble. Jose Mourinho might have delivered three trophies at Old Trafford in the 2016-17 season, but we aren’t taking into account the EFL Cup, Europa League and Community Shield here.

We are talking about the three biggest trophies available to English sides each season. Winning the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup within the same season looks like a near impossible task at the start of every campaign.

After all, United remain to be the only English side to have ever achieved this trophy haul. Sir Alex Ferguson’s side won the league title by a single point in 1999, narrowly beating Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal.

They also tasted triumph in the FA Cup with a 2-0 victory over Newcastle in the final. However, most sweet of all was their success in the Champions League.

Having already navigated a group containing Bayern Munich and Barcelona, United beat the likes of Inter Milan and Juventus on their way to the final before facing the German champions again in the final.

The 1999 Champions League final then proved to be one of the best in the history of the competition. Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer each hit the back of the net in stoppage time and the rest is history.

Pep Guardiola will have the opportunity to match this near impossible task this season as City are still on the hunt for three trophies. Arsenal have recently started to wobble in the league and so City will surely sense their moment to pounce.

As he usually does, the City boss played things cool in the media when asked about the possibility of City winning the treble this year.

“They [Man Utd] don’t have to be scared, we are neighbours, neighbours are always nice to each other,” Guardiola told reporters following their 3-0 triumph against Sheffield United.

“I said yesterday we are far away from the treble and this discussion for a funny moment is OK. The reality, I said many times, the most impressive thing for this club, from the hierarchy to the backroom staff is that after many years, six years, winning titles and titles, we are still there [competing]. I love to be here and work with this club.”

We’ve gone back through the years and compared United’s record with City’s this season at the same stage. The treble is within reach for Guardiola’s side, but it will still take some doing to get over the line yet.

Premier League

Manchester United 1998-99

Games: 30
Wins: 18
Draws: 9
Losses: 3

Points: 63
Points per game: 2.1

Goals: 68
Goals per game: 2.27
Goals against: 31
Goals against per game: 1.03

Manchester City 2022-23

Games: 30
Wins: 22
Draws: 4
Losses: 4

Points: 70
Points per game: 2.33

Goals: 78
Goals per game: 2.6
Goals against: 28
Goals against per game: 0.93

FA Cup

Manchester United 1998-99

Round 3: Middlesbrough – 3-1
Round 4: Liverpool – 2-1
Round 5: Fulham – 1-0
Round 6: Chelsea – 0-0
Round 6 replay: Chelsea – 2-0
Semi-final: Arsenal – 0-0
Semi-final replay: Arsenal – 2-1
Final: Newcastle – 2-0

Manchester City 2022-23

Round 3: Chelsea – 4-0
Round 4: Arsenal – 1-0
Round 5: Bristol City – 3-0
Round 6: Burnley – 6-0
Semi-final: Sheffield United – 3-0
Final: Manchester United – tbc

Champions League

Manchester United 1998-99

Teams faced in group stage: Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Brondby
Quarter-final: Inter Milan – 3-1 on aggregate
Semi-final: Juventus – 4-3 on aggregate
Final: Bayern Munich – 2-1

Manchester City 2022-23

Teams faced in group stage: Borussia Dortmund, Sevilla, Copenhagen
Round of 16: RB Leipzig – 8-1 on aggregate
Quarter-final: Bayern Munich – 4-1 on aggregate
Semi-final: Real Madrid – tbc
Final: tbc


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TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every member of Man Utd’s 1998-99 Treble-winning squad?