As Manchester City await the Champions League draw, the rest of Europe looks on to see how the Istanbul triumph will be looked back on
After disappointment two years previously in the Champions League final against Chelsea, this time even owner Sheikh Mansour was in attendance for just his second-ever match to witness the Blues win the one major trophy that had always eluded them.
City had for years before been one of the best teams in Europe, only to suffer an agonising defeat whenever it looked like they would mark that with the most prized silverware in the game. They may have lost some experienced players, but with a competitive squad and the genius of Guardiola there is no reason why the Blues cannot make it back-to-back triumphs.
Guardiola knows about these type of matches of course, having himself been part of a few before he took over in Manchester. The 2011 final win over Manchester United was an incredible triumph that paved the way for a decade of dominance for Spanish teams in Europe, and he was in his first season at Bayern when they were blown away 4-0 by eventual competition winners Real Madrid.
There have already been injury issues for the Blues this season, and it has been a transfer window that has removed bodies and experience from the squad. However, the start in the Premier League and the Super Cup triumph have shown that City are still a formidable outfit. The Premier League of course will always be a priority, but it is usually a consequence of playing well in the league that carries City with momentum into their big European nights. It is difficult to think that Bayern and Real could have been swept away in quite the same way if the team were scratching around for form in other competitions.
City have already broken records in English football and set new standards that will are unlikely to be seen again for at least a very long time once Guardiola decides he has had his time. There are few frontiers left to cross there, although winning four consecutive titles would obviously take them to a place nobody has ever managed.
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