PREM GUIDE
GREAT moments can stay seared into your brain forever.
And in six weeks’ time it will be exactly a year since a never-to-be-forgotten interview with Manchester City legend Mike Summerbee.
City had just demolished Watford 6-0 at Vicarage Road on September 16, 2017, with a hat-trick from Sergio Aguero (below) and goals from Gabriel Jesus, Nicolas Otamendi and a Raheem Sterling penalty.
We sat a couple of days later in the quiet of The Etihad campus and the club’s ambassador reflected on the magnitude of that result over a cup of coffee.
And what ‘Buzzer’ said about the real significance of that win masterminded by Pep Guardiola sends a chill down the spine.
Summerbee said: “That day was a watershed moment. Everybody knew what they had to do. We played that day exactly how Pep wanted us to play.
“What I saw in that game was close to perfection.”
In other words, the Pep penny had finally dropped with his talented squad. From that day City were unstoppable and finished as champions in record-busting style.
They won their third Premier League title with five games to spare, a record 100 points, most wins (32), most away wins (16) and most goals (106).
Now, the new season is almost upon us and I cannot see a team capable of denying City a repeat of that magnificent triumph.
We have the contenders with Liverpool – City’s tormentors last season – splashing £170.5million in assembling a Jurgen Klopp side with the title a real target after 28 years of hurt.
But quite frankly, the Reds could have raided the Bank of England vaults and spent every penny on new talent and still would not be at the races.
City are the bookies’ favourites and who would argue with that?
Guardiola finally got his man in £60m Riyad Mahrez from Leicester and that’s one of the best pieces of transfer business of the summer.
Mahrez is brilliant at worst, mind-blowing at best and a great addition to a City squad which will take some stopping.
Neighbours United will not be breathing down their neck, nor will Chelsea or Arsenal with Tottenham ready to finish third behind runners-up Liverpool. MILLARMAN’S PICKS Prem winners: Man City
Top four: Liverpool, Tottenham,
Man United
Chasing Europe: Arsenal,
Chelsea, Burnley Relegated: Cardiff, Fulham,
Huddersfield
FA Cup winners: Tottenham League Cup winners: Everton Champions League winners:
Man City