Manchester City clinch historic treble with Champions League victory
Manchester City secured their first-ever Champions League title and completed a treble with a 1-0 victory against Internazionale. Midfielder Rodri scored the winning goal from 15 yards in the 68th minute at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, marking a remarkable season for Pep Guardiola’s team. They had already claimed last season’s Premier League title, outpacing nearest rivals Arsenal, and defeated arch-rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final. This achievement makes City the first English Premier League club to win a treble of all three major trophies in a single season since United.
Sheikh Mansour, the owner of Manchester City, was present to witness his team’s triumph on Saturday evening. This was only the second game he has attended since his investment vehicle, the Abu Dhabi United Group, acquired City in 2008. Under Mansour’s guidance, the club has become a dominant force in English football, winning seven Premier League titles in the past 12 years and five of the last six.
Black smoke was seen billowing over the stadium in the hours leading up to kick-off due to a fire at a nearby factory, but the game was unaffected. City’s victory was marred by an injury to Kevin De Bruyne, who was forced to leave the pitch 10 minutes before half-time with what appeared to be a hamstring injury. He was replaced by Phil Foden.
Reflecting on his performance, Rodri said: “I wasn’t good in the first half – I was playing s***, to be honest and then we talk about mentality, I just said to myself, ‘You have to calm the situation’. At the end, I scored a goal. Unbelievable.”
The treble achievement resonated with Mario Balotelli, who accomplished the same feat with Internazionale in 2010. He told BT Sport: “When you win the Champions League, when you win it with a club it’s I think the highest emotion you can feel, you can have. In this moment it is even difficult to think, to speak, so I understand it totally.”
