‘Never say never’ – John Stones disagrees with Pep Guardiola over Man City treble Chance

‘Never say never’ – John Stones disagrees with Pep Guardiola over Man City treble Chance

Pep Guardiola said Manchester City’s chances of repeating last season’s treble are minuscule, but defender John Stones is daring to dream.

John Stones

John Stones helped City to a 2-0 win vs Everton

Before beating Everton on Saturday, Pep Guardiola rated Manchester City’s chance of repeating last season’s treble heroics at just 0.01 per cent. He didn’t change that stance after seeing the Blues temporarily go back to the top of the Premier League after the 2-0 win over the Toffees.

 

 

But John Stones believes City have all the ingredients to become the first team to win the treble twice, and even do it in back-to-back seasons. With City’s record of winning trophies and overcoming the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal in fierce title races, Stones believes all they need is to have the goal in sight of defending all three treble trophies.

 

City have already won the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup this season, and navigated a tricky FA Cup fourth-round tie at Tottenham to set up a trip to Luton. They are firmly in the title race in the Premier League, and resume their Champions League campaign this week at Copenhagen in the last-16 first leg.

 

Stones is back from injury and was back in the starting XI to face Everton on Saturday, with the prospect of a ‘double treble’ put to him after the game. Speaking to BBC Radio Manchester, he insisted that nothing is impossible given what he and his teammates have achieved in recent years.

 

 

“I think you know me by now, I look at the game in hand. So, I think for us to have a goal, never say never,” he said defiantly.

 

“What we did last season has only been done twice, which everyone knows, we’re super proud of that. And when a bar’s been set, so high, you’ve got to try and keep reaching that bar. It’s definitely something I believe we can do.

 

“Whether we do it or not, we’ll wait and see. But to believe and to have that goal is massively important. I don’t think anything’s impossible to do and with this group and mentality and players we’ve got. It’s something I’d love to do again.”

 

Guardiola had assessed City’s chances after the Everton win, which saw his side make it ten wins in a row in all competitions. While he wouldn’t budge on his opinion regarding the treble, he did declare that his team is ‘alive’, in a passionate three-minute answer.

 

 

“The team this season in the difficulties make a step forward, how many times we come back from losing positions, today was a tough game,” he said. “I would love to be 4-0 after 50 minutes with four goals for Erling Haaland, I would stay sitting with Juanma [Lillo], but it’s not like that.

 

“That’s why I love to win this type of games, because we learned the lesson for what’s coming now, the Champions League, Chelsea, the opponents we have next month.

 

“The environment of the team, the feeling of the team from day one this season I said ‘ok, I like it’. That doesn’t mean we’re going to win but I like it.”