Manchester City return to Premier League action on Saturday knowing they are 15 games away from winning an unprecedented quadruple.
With the League Cup already under their belt, they are two points behind leaders Liverpool in the league with a game in hand, and will face Brighton in the FA Cup semi-finals and Tottenham in the Champions League quarter-finals.
What’s more, they are the bookies’ favourite to win every competition. So can they do it?
Only two other English teams have still had the chance of winning the quadruple by 30 March: Chelsea in 2006-07, and Manchester United in 2008-09.
Managed by Jose Mourinho, Chelsea lasted until 1 May with their hopes of a clean sweep alive, before losing to Liverpool on penalties in the Champions League semi-finals.
Two years later, Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United side made it to 19 April before their dream ended with a penalty shootout defeat by Everton in the FA Cup semi-finals.
That United team got to within three matches of winning all four trophies, also losing to Barcelona in the Champions League final.
The best haul in United’s history famously saw them win the Treble in 1998-99 but they were nowhere near the quadruple that season, losing to Tottenham in the quarter-finals of the League Cup on 2 December.
Another legendary Premier League side, Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles‘ of 2003-04, might have stayed unbeaten for the duration of their league campaign but their quadruple hopes ended on 3 February when they lost 3-1 on aggregate to Middlesbrough in the League Cup semi-finals.
Manchester City’s ‘Centurions’, who broke a series of Premier League points and scoring records on their way to last season’s title, were fighting on four fronts until 19 February before losing to Wigan in the FA Cup.
But City’s best effort before this year actually came in 2013-14, when Manuel Pellegrini’s side lost in the FA Cup quarter-finals on 9 March – again going out to Wigan, so it is probably a relief they do not have to face the Latics this season.
