There was a time when the old trophy with the three handles felt like the personal property of Pep Guardiola. The Manchester City manager won the League Cup for the first time in 2018, beating Arsenal in the final, and he repeated the trick in each of the next three seasons.
The ensuing years have been less kind to Guardiola and the club in the competition but here was the riposte. On so many levels. City had entered this final as the underdogs; an unusual position but a reflection of how Arsenal have been the pre-eminent team in England and Europe so far this season.
Continue reading…There was a time when the old trophy with the three handles felt like the personal property of Pep Guardiola. The Manchester City manager won the League Cup for the first time in 2018, beating Arsenal in the final, and he repeated the trick in each of the next three seasons.The ensuing years have been less kind to Guardiola and the club in the competition but here was the riposte. On so many levels. City had entered this final as the underdogs; an unusual position but a reflection of how Arsenal have been the pre-eminent team in England and Europe so far this season. Continue reading…
