‘I know the Best way for City to celebrate’
the team hotel near Newcastle on the morning of the match.
“We used to stay at the Five Bridges Hotel in Gateshead and we got there, had a meal and a glass of wine instead of a sleeping tablet. We were always relaxed before a game and no one took advantage of it. We went in the bowling alley at the back and were in bed for 10.
“At seven o’clock in the morning, the noise was unbelievable. We looked out and there must have been 20,000 City fans outside.”
Summerbee and his City team-mates were super fit thanks to the innovative training methods of Malcolm Allison, the City coach who was the Pep Guardiola of his time.
“They had us running round the athletic track in Wythenshawe Park in pre-season – we had no spikes or anything,” Summerbee recalled. “It was like a kind of interval training. We weren’t very happy at first, everyone was moaning. But after about six weeks, the difference was unbelievable.
“When we got really used to it, 10 or 15 minutes from the end of a game the physio used to shout, ‘Right lads, top gear now’, and we’d step it up. We were really fit. You had to be as it was really physical in those days – full-backs would chip wingers over the stand for fun.
“And the pitches were difficult. You rarely had a game cancelled – if there was snow you took the top off and played on ice. We were physically a very strong side.”
All the memories will come flooding back when Summerbee, Colin Bell, Franny Lee and the other surviving members of that 1967-68 team form a guard of honour for Guardiola’s squad as they emerge at the Etihad for their Premier League title coronation against Huddersfield tomorrow.
Summerbee, now 75 and a club ambassador, can see the similarities between Allison and Guardiola.
“Malcolm was way beyond his time and Pep has revolutionised football in this country,” he said.
“Both are great man-managers and share the same idea that attack is the best form of defence. United in those days were individually better than we were, but collectively, as a team, we were different class. We could just turn it on.
“Malcolm would have loved this City team. His widow is coming to the game on Sunday and she thinks Pep is wonderful. It’s going to be a great honour.”
Summerbee is loathe to make comparisons between the teams but can see the similarities between Bell and Kevin De Bruyne.
“Not only are they lookalikes, they play similarly. Two big engines, they can pass the ball, they have pace. If any players out of this side and my side compare, it’s those two.”
And Summerbee says keeping Guardiola for the long term is crucial to City’s hopes of doing what his team failed to do and win multiple titles.
“I’d like to see him stay forever.”