Premier League: Manchester City make history, become first men’s team to win four titles in a row

Manchester: Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City made history on Sunday by becoming the first English club to win four Premier League titles in a row with a 3-1 win over West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium here. Guardiola has masterminded an unprecedented era of dominance for the second club from Manchester, who have now lifted 17 major honours since the Spanish coach arrived in Manchester.

With Sunday’s win over the Hammers, City finished with 91 points from 38 matches with 28 wins and seven draws, ending two points ahead of Arsenal, who defeated Everton 2-1 at home. Liverpool won 2-0 against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield to secure third place in the table.

At the start of the day, the focus was on City as everyone wanted to know whether this side had the can repeat the monumental achievement of winning the Big Five trophies in 2023.

Sealed on the final day of a gruelling campaign, Manchester City have now won 10 English league titles in total and six of those titles have come under their Catalan manager.

The 3-1 final-day victory over West Ham United was made possible by two goals by Phil Foden, who was named Premier League Player of the Season and Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year, and one by Rodrigo.

Foden took just 79 seconds to fire City into the lead before doubling their advantage when he turned in Jeremy Doku’s pinpoint cross in the 18th minute.

West Ham’s Mohammed Kudus pulled a goal back with a stunning overhead kick just before half-time. But Rodrigo put the result beyond doubt with an elegant finish as Guardiola’s side remained unbeaten at Etihad STadium throughout this season.

This latest Premier League title success is the third trophy City have won during the 2023/24 season, building on the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup victories earlier in the campaign.

City now have an opportunity to become the first side in English football history to win back-to-back Premier League and FA Cup doubles when they face cross-town rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final at Wembley on May 25.

Sunday’s historic achievement now sits alongside the 100 Premier League points that Manchester City achieved in 2017/18, their Fourmidables campaign of 2018/19, and their incredible Champions League, Premier League, and FA Cup Treble of 2022-23 among the pantheon of hugely significant City milestones in recent seasons.

–IANS