No team will ever match trophy haul, claims Pep

PEP GUARDIOLA believes Manchester City’s incredible spell of domestic dominance will never be matched after they lifted the sixth major trophy of his reign.

City were in control against Aston Villa at Wembley yesterday through goals from Sergio Aguero and Rodri, before Mbwana Samatta struck back for Dean Smith’s side, who almost forced extra-time. But the reigning Premier League champions held on to seal a third consecutive Carabao Cup, which was a fourth successive domestic trophy after last season’s Treble. ‘I think it is remarkable to win eight of the last nine titles (including the Community Shield) and it will be so difficult for anyone to do it again — not just us, but our opponents,’ said Guardiola. ‘It means consistency. When you remember and review it, you know this group of players are so special. ‘It’s about showing that we are there in every game. That is the best thing we can give to a club. I think it is important that everybody knows we have a responsibility to win titles. ‘Sergio (Aguero) has won 13 titles here, that is amazing. The legacy of the new striker (who replaces him) will be compared to that high level and that is good.’ Guardiola (pictured) believes his four seasons at the Etihad have left a lasting legacy — and claimed the amount of silverware has elevated City to a different level. The Catalan did, however, confess to surprise at his club’s success. ‘I definitely could not have imagined it,’ he added. ‘The most remarkable thing is that so many Premier League champions drop after winning the league — they finish fifth or sixth or seventh — but we are still there in second, seven points clear from third, so that counts for something.’ Guardiola had insisted his squad still had the hunger and desire to continue succeeding despite falling behind champions-elect Liverpool in the title race — and Raheem Sterling laid that bare. ‘I can never get enough of it,’ said Sterling. ‘We’ve done the job and we were professional. The league was difficult this year. ‘We’ve won one title so far, but we’re still in the running for two more. We’re fully focused and ready to do the business. ‘It’s so hard to do that for three years on the bounce and that’s what we’ve done, so we’ll just keep doing it, keep trying to win trophies.’ Guardiola praised John Stones for the way in which he reacted after his accidental slip let in Samatta for Villa’s goal. And he was indebted to Claudio Bravo for his stunning late save from Bjorn Engels. The Chilean continues to have his critics but Guardiola is not one of them. ‘He is one of the most incredible pros I’ve ever seen,’ said the City boss. ‘I have never doubted his qualities as a goalkeeper.’ Much of his praise was reserved for man-of-the-match Phil Foden, with the 19-year-old English midfielder making his first appearance for a month. ‘Unfortunately for him, he fights against one of the best players in the world in his position, but in training he’s incredible and always ready,’ said Guardiola. ‘We can count on him. ‘The game he played, the media decided he was man of the match, so congratulations.’ Villa boss Smith was perplexed that Manchester City were awarded a corner before Rodri’s header but believes his team have shown enough that they can stay in the top flight. ‘We can’t hide from the fact we’re in the bottom three after the results on Saturday,’ said Smith. ‘But we can take a lot of heart from that performance and, if we play like that against many teams in the league, we will get out of that relegation spot. ‘Today’s performance was the standard. We were written off after last week’s result at Southampton (a 2-0 defeat) but there haven’t been too many of those. I’m disappointed because we came here with an awful lot of belief. ‘Everyone had written us off, I think we were 18-1 to win and there was a lot of motivation in that dressing room to go and prove a lot of people wrong. ‘But, unfortunately, you have a mountain to climb against Man City when they go 2-0 up. ‘But I was really pleased with the reaction from the team. I never felt like the game would run away from us. I could tell from the players’ body language on the pitch, their eyes when they went out there that they were definitely ready for this game. ‘I told the team I was really proud of the performance.’