Pep Guardiola has acknowledged that replicating Manchester City’s treble triumph will be “impossible” due to its status as a unique “once in a lifetime” accomplishment.
In the 2022–23 season, the Sky Blues achieved historic success by clinching the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League titles.
This feat marked the first time since Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson in 1999 that a team had secured the treble.
Although the Spanish manager has welcomed the arrivals of Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic, he maintains that achieving a similar feat will be an immensely challenging endeavour.
“It is once in a lifetime. It will not be possible to do what we did last season,” he told reporters.
“We climbed the highest mountain last season, but in the last two days we came down from it, and now we start again.
“Everyone has the same intention, and there will be a lot of difficulties to climb the mountain as high as possible. Our football, our level, and our mentality will dictate how the season will be,” he added.
Guardiola was surprised to learn that Tottenham have agreed to sell Harry Kane to Bayern Munich, for a figure of over €100 million (£86 million or $110 million), as the manager failed in his bid to bring the England international to the Etihad a few years ago despite leaving no stone unturned.
When asked about his opinion on the move, Guardiola did hide his astonishment: “Is that [correct]? Officially?”
After a brief pause, he added: “Everybody knows [what qualities he brings to the table]. Just take a look at him and how good he is. He has great attributes and is a top striker. Right, left, header, dropping, quality of play assists, scoring goals arriving.
“An exceptional striker who has shown it for many, many years. Just Alan Shearer is ahead of him as the Premier League’s top goalscorer and exceptional player.”
Man City will begin their quest to defend all three titles in the 2023–24 season with a clash against Burnley in the Premier League on Friday.