Can Man City lift the Premier League title for a record four consecutive years?

Manchester City have managed to establish themselves as one of the best teams in the world under Pep Guardiola’s guidance.

The Citizens won the first league title back in 2012 and since then they have managed to win the league six more times. Their dominance in English football has gone to the next step in recent years as they have managed to win the league on five occasions in the last six seasons.

Man City were fighting hard to become the European champions over the last decade but they were struggling to go all the way. But, they finally won that trophy last term and became the only second English team after Manchester United to win a historic treble last season.

Man Utd were holding the record of winning the Premier League for three consecutive seasons and they did that on two different occasions. However, Guardiola’s side have now managed to achieve the hat-trick of league titles and they are now looking to make a new record of lifting the league for a record four consecutive seasons.

Summer reinforcements

The Citizens have gone through a mini midfield overhaul this summer as they have decided to sign Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes after letting Ilkay Gundogan leave the club.

They have also splashed £78m to sign Josko Gvardiol from RB Leipzig to reinforce their backline, while Man City have signed Jeremy Doku from Stade Rennais to bolster their frontline.

So, Man City opted to splash the cash in the summer to strengthen their squad with the intention of mounting yet another title charge this term.

Story of this season

The Citizens have enjoyed a promising start to this season, sitting at the summit of the table with 28 points from 12 games. Guardiola’s side have lost two games this season and both of those defeats came when Rodri was unavailable due to suspension. So, this suggests that, although Man City have excellent depth in their squad, they lack options in their holding midfield position after the Spaniard.

Kalvin Phillips was purchased from Leeds United to support the former Atletico Madrid star, however, the Englishman has found it difficult to break into the Citizens’ first eleven. So, it has now been suggested that Phillips could leave the Etihad Stadium in January to find regular game-time elsewhere.

Man City haven’t felt the absence of Gundogan this season as other midfield options have managed to fill the German’s void. Kovacic and Nunes have joined the club after the 33-year-old’s departure and both have enjoyed a promising start.

Doku has turned out to be an excellent signing for the champions as the Belgian has managed to establish himself as a key member of Guardiola’s starting eleven, keeping Jack Grealish – who played a pivotal role in the Citizens’ treble-winning campaign last term – away from the first team squad. De Bruyne’s injury initially looked like a big blow for Man City, however, Julian Alvarez has filled his void seamlessly.

The only disappointment for Man City this term is that they have been knocked out of the Carabao Cup after losing against Newcastle United. So, they won’t be able to win the quadruple this season. Although it sounds ridiculous that anyone is winning the quadruple in English football, however, if any club can achieve that, this Guardiola’s side certainly have the firepower to do that.

Meanwhile, along with the Premier League, Man City have also been displaying eye-catching performances in the Champions League, sitting at the top of their group after winning all four of their games. They have already secured their place in the knockout stage.

Expectation

Man City are expected to challenge for every competition that they play and it’s not anything different this season. They are certainly the favourite to win the league once again this term and are also one of the contenders to lift the Champions League this season.

So, although Man City have gone through a little shuffle in their squad last summer, they are still as strong as they were last season. Therefore, they can certainly achieve the treble in back-to-back seasons.

Guardiola’s side get better as the season progresses and they usually showcase their best during the second half of every season. So, if they remain at the summit of the league in the first part of this campaign, then it would be extremely difficult for the chasing teams to catch and overtake them during the closing weeks.

City’s fan-base has been growing at a fast pace over the past decade and it’s now increasingly difficult to buy tickets for their matches. Fans can still get Manchester City tickets from a ticket marketplace but there is no doubt demand will increase further if the Cityzens continue their incredible success by winning another treble this season.

Closest rivals

Liverpool have been the closest rivals of Man City over the last few years. However, they have struggled to showcase their best in two consecutive campaigns in recent times.

After lifting the league in the 19/20 season, the Merseyside club failed to replicate the same performance in the following campaign and the same thing happened last term when they couldn’t finish in the top-four having challenged the Citizens for the league title in the previous season before losing it for just a single point.

After strengthening the squad last summer, Liverpool have enjoyed a promising start to this season, sitting second in the league with 27 points from 12 games. So, they are showing signs that they can mount a title charge this season.

On the other hand, after struggling to showcase their best over the last few years, Arsenal surprisingly managed to mount a title charge last term before narrowly missing out on winning it.

They have reinforced their squad in the last transfer window to close the gap with the Citizens and challenge on all fronts this season. Arsenal have also had a bright start this season, accumulating the same number of points as Liverpool but sitting third in the table in goal difference. Therefore, the early signs suggest that the North London club can be a threat to Man City from becoming the English champions yet again this season.

Tottenham Hotspur have also enjoyed a stellar start under Ange Postecoglou’s guidance this season and were at the top of the table in the last few weeks. However, it doesn’t look likely that the North London club have the necessary squad depth to challenge for the title this season.

So, Liverpool and Arsenal are seemingly the closest rivals for Man City to win the Premier League title this season. However, if Guardiola’s side can get the rhythm in the second half of this season as they usually do, then they could achieve the treble this season as well. So, it is going to be interesting to see how the season unfolds for Man City over the coming months.