Saturday night sees Manchester City aiming to join the most elite of European football pantheons- the treble winners. Their intra-city rivals, United are the only other English club to do it, achieving the trifecta in 1998-99. Scottish powerhouse Celtic was the first European team to win a treble, achieving the feat in 1966-67. Dutch juggernauts Ajax were the next to do it in 1971-72.
Bavarian giants Bayern Munich (2012-13 and 2019-20) and the Catalan Club FC Barcelona (2008-09 and 2014-15) have each pulled it off twice as well.
UEFA Champions League Final FYIs
Kickoff: Sat June 10, 8pm, Atatürk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Team News: Inter Milan Manchester City
Starting XI Prediction: Inter Milan Manchester City
90 Min Result Probability: Inter Milan 14% Manchester City 66% Extra Time 20%
PSV Eindhoven (Holland) accomplished triple trophies in 1987-88 while Inter Milan became the only Italian team to do it, accomplishing the feat in 2009-10.
While Manchester City already have a double in the bag, and they have dominated domestically (five of the last six Premier League titles) in a manner that the aforementioned clubs have done in their respective countries, they REALLY NEED to finally win the European Cup/Champions League in order to truly have a seat at the head table.
Pep Guardiola agrees. “Sooner or later we have to win in Europe to go to another level,” he said.
We think the stating lineup below is the best cards that he can play in terms of the winning hand.
Manchester City Starting XI Prediction vs Inter Milan (UCL Final)
Ederson; Ake, Dias, Akanji; Stones, Rodri; Silva, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Grealish; Haaland
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.