Guardiola's Man City secures historic four consecutive EPL titles

Manchester City has set a new milestone in the 136-year history of English professional soccer by winning four consecutive Premier League (EPL) titles.

Under the leadership of manager Pep Guardiola, Man City defeated West Ham 3-1 in their final home match of the 2023-2024 EPL season on Monday, with Phil Foden scoring two goals. With an unbeaten streak of 23 matches (19 wins and four draws), Man City finished the season with 28 wins, seven draws, and three losses, earning 91 points. This surpassed Arsenal (89 points), who won 2-1 against Everton, to clinch the title.

With this achievement, Man City has won the league title for four consecutive seasons starting from the 2020-2021 season. This is the first time in the history of the top tier of English professional soccer, which began in 1888, that a team has won four consecutive titles. Before the EPL was established in 1992, Huddersfield Town (1924-1926), Arsenal (1933-1935), and Liverpool (1982-1984) each won three consecutive titles. In the EPL era, Manchester United (Man U) achieved two sets of three consecutive titles (1999-2001, 2007-2009). Man City has now won the EPL six times in the last seven seasons since the 2017-2018 season, and their total of eight titles ranks them second in history, behind Man U (13 titles).

British media, including the BBC, highlighted Guardiola's leadership. Since joining Man City in the 2016-2017 season, Guardiola has won 17 trophies. In the 2018-2019 season, Man City became the first team to win the domestic treble, comprising the EPL, FA Cup, and League Cup. Last season, they won the UEFA Champions League (UCL) for the first time in the club's history by defeating Inter Milan (Italy) in Istanbul, achieving a treble that included the EPL and FA Cup. If they win the FA Cup final against Man U on Saturday, they will add another trophy to their collection.

However, Guardiola hinted that he might leave Man City soon. “It’s over, there’s nothing left. But I have a contract, I’m still here,” he said. “I start to think that no one has done four in a row, why don’t we try? And now I feel it’s done, so what next?" Guardiola's contract runs until 2025.


Jong-Koo Yang yjongk@donga.com