Pep Guardiola Speaks On Man City's Potential Treble Win, As They Face Inter Milan In The UCL Final.

 Manchester City's manager Pep Guardiola has stated that the UEFA Champions League final clash against Inter Milan is a must win game for his team to earn the recognition they deserve.

The Spaniard believes that his players recognise that they have a rare opportunity, perhaps one which they will never have again, as they have the chance now to do something truly historic in order to join neighbors Manchester United as English football's only treble winners.

City could take their place alongside that iconic team if they can beat Italian giants Inter Milan.

A double by captain IIkay Gundogan gave the Premier League champions a 2-1 victory over rivals Man United in the FA Cup Wembley final, and kept their treble hopes alive.

The FA Cup victory is Man City’s second trophy this season as they won the Premier League for the 2022-23 season, finishing five points above second-placed Arsenal, and are now just one game away from winning a historic treble.

They will now turn their attention to the Champions League final against Inter Milan in Istanbul on Saturday, June 10 as they bid to lift the trophy  for the first time in their history and emulate Man United’s historic treble feat of 1999.

Speaking in the press conference afterwards, Guardiola  a two-time Champions League winner as Barcelona manager, believes that City have been on a multi-year journey;

"Now is the first time we can talk about the treble," Guardiola told the BBC. "Against United, it was special for our city, for our fans. We performed really well. Really, really well. I am so pleased."

"We have done incredible, five Premier Leagues, two FA Cups and Carabaos but we have to win the Champions League to be recognised how the team deserves to be. It has been amazing, been fun, but we have to win it.

"I would say it is incredibly remarkable in three years we have had two finals and one semi-final of the Champions League. That is incredible but in the end we have to win it. I know how it works.

"We are one game away. I said to the players you have to put the pressure on yourself. To be recognised as something good you have to win Europe."

Pep spoke about his players' perspective, too. He said: "They know what we have ahead of us. Everyone says 'one more to go, one more to go'. They feel we are in a position we will probably never be in again, and after we have three or four training sessions, to prepare for Inter Milan. I have two days to watch them. Then we go there to try."

Man City reached the Champions League final two years ago, but were beaten by Chelsea. 

Last year, Pep's rampant side were stunned by a historic Real Madrid comeback in the semi-finals. Madrid went on to win the title as they so often do, while Guardiola was left to reflect on his eleven-year drought in the competition.

After beating Man United in the Champions League finals of 2009 and 2011 with Barca, Guardiola has routinely fallen in the latter stages of the competition. He struggles to reflect that at City, a club with a longstanding desire to lift Europe's most coveted trophy.

Since arriving in English football in 2016, Guardiola's City teams have often been considered Europe's strongest but have been unable to take the final step.

For City to claim a similar place in the European pantheon, they need a European title and Pep knows it.