Since 1926, five teams have attempted to win four times in a row: Huddersfield, Arsenal, you had Liverpool in the '80s, and then you had Manchester United who attempted it twice. None of them succeeded. None of them succeeded. So over 100 years of English football, never any team was able to achieve four championships in a row. Once that sinks in, you start really appreciating the magnitude of what was achieved.
Now it's a time in the Manchester City diary we all look forward to — the Chairman's interview. Every year we sit down with Khaldoon Al Mubarak and dissect the season just gone and look ahead. The 2024 edition is now available to watch in two parts on the official City website, app, and YouTube channel. So here it is: Chris Bailey in conversation with Manchester City Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, filmed on location in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, June 1st, 2024. And City have the possession of the ball, and there's the final whistle. At last it's done. At last the whistle has sounded. There is a huge pitch invasion, which we've become accustomed to over the years. But this is another historic moment in this wonderful team's recent history — they have won a fourth league title in a row. No team in English football history has ever done that before.
Khaldoon, thank you again for inviting us into your home to do the end-of-season interview. Really only one place we can start: on the back of a treble, winning a fourth consecutive Premier League title. How did that make you feel?
Well, it feels like these last two seasons are one season almost — interconnected. Finishing last summer, winning the Champions League, it happened so fast. We had a very short preseason, and then straight back at the Charity Shield, the Super Cup, and then we go on to the season. And to finish it off, winning our fourth Premier League in a row. Now, unlike last year, Chris, you did the interview the morning of winning the Champions League, the day after, where it was, you know, exhausting. I didn't even have time to really properly think this one through and then let it sink in. This time, fortunately, we've had a week, so I've had a lot of time to think about this. You know, we have to always sometimes pause and contextualize. Since 1926, five teams have attempted to win four times in a row — five teams: Huddersfield, Arsenal, you had Liverpool in the '80s, and then you had Manchester United who attempted it twice. None of them succeeded. None of them succeeded. So over 100 years of English football, never any team was able to achieve four championships in a row. So once that sinks in, you start really appreciating the magnitude of what was achieved, the difficulty, the challenge, the tenacity required.
And then you really now, a week after in a relaxed way, you can answer this. Were there times during the season when it didn't look likely? Were you worried at certain points that it wasn't going to happen?
I mean, every game was a cup final from December onward, basically, in the league. So I'll tell you something — I will tell you that. You want actually, let me ask myself the question: when did I know we were going to win the league? You're going, when did you know you were going to win the league? Yes, I'm not — I'm going to surprise you with that one. Go Arsenal away. Arsenal away, we didn't play particularly well, we didn't play particularly bad, but I think it was an off game by our standards. But I don't think we deserved to lose. If you remember, we lost with that deflected goal in the last minutes. I said, this is why we're going to win the league. Today I know how this team is going to react going forward, and I know we're going to win the league.
So the question is: four in a row — what next? Five in a row sounds good to me.
Oh, absolutely, without a doubt. Actually, to be clear, this is something that I'm most proud of in this club and in this entire organization. We have from top to bottom — I would say if you ask this question to anyone, they will answer you probably the same answer: players, executives, physios, board, whoever you're going to ask — they'll answer you the same thing: five in a row. And by the way, that five in a row in our minds happened the second that final whistle against West Ham. I remember just going down to the pitch and telling almost everybody I saw: excellent, fantastic result, we're so proud, but now we're going for five in a row.
How do you reflect then on — so the Club World Cup was won, the Super Cup was won. How do you reflect on those and the Cup competitions? It seemed we were that far away from another treble.
I mean, let's be clear — we didn't lose a single game in the Champions League. No team actually beat us in 90 minutes or 120 minutes. We lost at the end of the day at the property of penalty kicks, and penalty kicks, winner or loser, it's a flip of a coin at the end of the day. So we gave it an incredible shot. We got to the quarterfinals. We played against our rival, the most decorated team in European club history. But there's always a silver lining — that gives us more hunger, more tenacity. You can see today I'm delighted, and I think I reflect how our coaching staff, how our management team, how our leadership, the board, the owner, His Highness Sheikh Mansour, and of course everybody in our staff — everybody feels obviously proud and delighted with what we achieved this year.
I have to ask: is anything changed in the last 12 months with regard to the charges brought by the Premier League? Are you still frustrated, and how much of an impact has the constant referencing of them had on you and the club?
Yeah, of course it's frustrating. I think the reference is always frustrating, having it being talked about the way it's being talked about. I can feel, of course, for our fan base, for everyone associated with the club, to have these charges constantly referenced. I think we as a club have to respect that there's a process that we have to go through, and we're going through it. It's taking longer than what anyone hoped for, but it is what it is. And I've always repeated that in every interview I've done with you, of course: let's be judged by the facts and not by claims and counter-claims.
Thank you. So if we move on to Pep now, I mean, obviously the players take a lot of the plaudits, but is it possible for you to put into words — not about him as a manager, but him as a man? Before we talk about his contract situation, what has he brought to City? What does he bring to the organization as a human being, not just a football manager?
You know, it's hard to put in words what Pep has given this organization, this club. You can look at just records for history's sake, and there I think he's racked up, you know, every record almost in the book. And these are records that I think will be very, very hard in the future to ever break. You know, from winning six out of the last seven Premier Leagues, to winning four in a row, to the number of wins — you know, the records go on and on and on. But also beyond that, I think what his impact has been on football, English football has changed with the evolution to the type of football that Pep has brought into the league. But beyond all that, I would see one of the things I am particularly proud of, and I think Pep has brought. Two points: last game of the season against West Ham, and then the FA Cup Final — the last game of this season. The chair of the Premier League, Alison, went and obviously delivered the trophy to Pep and the team. She came back afterwards, and we had a conversation, and she told me something that I think caught very much in my heart. She said, 'You know, you have to be very proud. I encountered something that was quite unique giving the trophy to the team.' And I asked her what was it. She said, 'Every single member of the team, from coaching staff to players, looked me in the eye and said thank you with a smile and with respect.' And it's quite remarkable. Normally in these things, you know, players, etc., are in a rush or is too busy. Every single one of them did that. A week later, we had the FA Cup Final, and the chair of the FA, Debbie, also ended up sending me a nice email after the final. And she said to me something also interesting. She said, 'We saw something very special in the FA Cup Final. Obviously commiserations on losing the game, but never have we seen in the FA Cup Final a team put a guard of honor to the winning team, and Manchester City did that.' And then again, the way the players, the coaches, every member of Manchester City — from board members to management — the way we behaved, she said was a great reflection of how this team is in terms of respect, humbleness, and just the attitude. And I think this is something I'm very, very proud of. It's winning — it's about winning, of course — but it's also about how you behave when you win and how you behave when you lose. And that, I think, we have something very special in this club. And this is why we are successful, and this is why I'm confident we will continue to be successful.
And I don't want this to sound like a goodbye to Pep, so where are you in terms of his contract and those conversations?
Oh, no, with Pep — listen, we've had this conversation many times before. You know that over the years of the contract, Pep has always been fully committed to this club, fully committed to every contract he's signed with us. The decision on his future is always a decision we take together, and I have no doubt we will find, as always, as we always have done, the right solution that works for Pep and works for us.
Now, if we move on to players — I know you don't like talking about individual players because it's a team game, but I'm going to try and make you talk about individual players. And I've got to start off with a bit of a quiz. So I've written this answer. Do you remember who said this and about whom, in 2019? And this is where I'm quoting here: 'He is a player who accepts the evolution of his role. He will be a superstar, one of the most important players of his generation. And the best thing he has done is taking the decision to be patient.'
Fortunately, I can still remember what I've said. So that was — yeah, that was when I was speaking about Phil. Correct. I've had the privilege of watching Phil develop from being an 8-year-old young player at the Academy. I've seen him with my own eyes as an 8-year-old, as a 9-year-old, as a 10-year-old, and as he's grown from age group to age group within the Academy, and then making it all the way to the first team. I think throughout that journey, it was clear to all of us where Phil was going, and it was always about giving him the right environment and ecosystem and the right development framework around him to help him grow to what he is today — arguably one of the most decorated English footballers ever. And you can see that 8-year-old City fan — we still see pictures of him walking out hand in hand with a player as a mascot — and to think that he is now.
Would you categorize him as a leader in that dressing room?
Absolutely, he's a leader. And I use the word craft because football, to Phil, is a craft. He loves it. He's passionate about it. Nice story with Phil: at the last game of the Premier League season, the day before the West Ham game, I was attending practice, the last training before the game, and practice finished. I was chatting with someone. All the players left towards the dressing room, but there was one player that was still on the pitch taking shot after shot after shot. And he was at the 18-yard line, the central point of the 18-yard line, and he was taking shots just on target — alone, nobody left. So I walked towards him. He made one brilliant shot to the top corner, and I remember I spoke to him. I said, 'Phil, wonderful, but keep that for tomorrow. Phil, in the game tomorrow, that same one, that same one, in the game tomorrow — get us that league, get us that league, come on.' And sure enough, next day, 3 minutes into the game, he does it — exactly that shot, exactly that shot. And I think there's a lot of lessons in this about, you know, that love and commitment and craftsmanship that Phil has towards the game, and how really even at that level, last game of the season, he was still out there. And then the next day, you can see how practice makes perfect.
While we're talking about individuals — and no disrespect to anybody we don't mention — but Erling had an injury-interrupted season. People were on his back. He ends up winning the Golden Boot. And Rodri ended up winning nothing, but played 70-odd games without defeat for City. So had those two probably deserve special mention again?
Well, those two and many others. But when you have achieved excellence, which is I think what we continue to achieve in this club, expectations are so high, and that's natural. You know, when you win as much as we've won over the years, people's expectations are incredible. I mean, if you look at Erling on a standalone basis — and he's missed, as you know, many weeks because of injury — he still ended up with, I think, 38 goals for the season. 38 goals for a season, and people are thinking this is an off year. So Erling is Erling, and Erling is a goal machine, and continues to be, in my opinion, the best striker in the world. Rodri is another. I mean, if you look at it, he's had, I think, the record — the most number of unbeaten streak for the team in European football history. I mean, that's extraordinary, extraordinary. I think only, if I'm not mistaken, the two AC Milan players, Maldini and Albertini, were one game behind them. So that level and standard of excellence is extraordinary. The position he plays is not the glamorous position, but he is absolutely fundamental to this team, and one of the most critical reasons why we continue to win and succeed and achieve what we are achieving. There's many other players. In the last four years, we won the best player in the league four times, and by the way, four different players. You know, this says it all — it's a team. Be it Rúben Dias one year, be it Kevin De Bruyne the second year, be it Erling Haaland last year, and this year Phil Foden. So that shows you we have a team. This is a team. It's not individuals. It's the grouping of very talented, highly motivated, and very disciplined players that have a shared vision and a shared mission, and they go about it in a way that I think exudes the highest level of excellence.
And it's a team that evolves as well — youngsters come in, and players go, and new ones come in. But I guess Rico Lewis and Oscar Bobb, and Micah Hamilton this year was sort of pushing his way through. So how integral is the Academy to the sustainability of the first team, and how sustainable is it, I guess, is the question?
It's very sustainable. We are very careful in keeping that squad always fresh with a mixture of new players coming in, players I think leaving at the right time, and then a boost from the Academy. So that tells you everything — we always maintain that balance.
What bearing do the current regulations have on what you can and can't do this summer in particular? Because it feels like to the layman, certainly, it's a complicated landscape: FFP, PSR, squad cost ratios, the 70% rule in Europe. I mean, how hard is it to navigate all those regulations, and will that make this summer's transfer market subdued, or do you think it will be buoyant?
Specifically for us, or in general? Well, both. Okay, I think the Premier League got to where it is today by being the most competitive league, so I hope there's a bit more sensibility in regulating — always a balanced approach is good, from all the leagues, be it in England or the rest of Europe. I think you won't see the same level as we've seen in the past years because of the level of regulations that have come into place over the last 12 months.
Is it likely then that there'll be fewer cash deals and more swaps, or player plus cash?
No, even that — because there's also been a lot of restrictions now put in place on swaps and loans. So even that is now much more restricted. So I think the level of maneuverability that was in place before that allowed teams to do what they were able to do in the past, I think is much more restricted this year, and that's going to be reflected, I believe, this summer.
So this week seen a lot of discussion about player overload, and it's a subject that's been going on really all season. Do you think we are asking too much of our players in relation to the number of games they're being asked to play?
So I'd like regulators to focus more on that. So I think, at the end of the day, my message here is: let's focus on the mental health, let's focus on the physical health of our players. I think that is very important, rather than spending so much time on regulatory issues that just kind of slow down the growth of the game. To my point when I started — I mean, it felt the last two years was almost one season interconnected. It's not enough time to both physically and mentally recover, and it's too much. It's too much. And I think, no doubt, the international schedule of demand is just too much on these players, particularly with these competitions that they continuously compete in. So there's a lot of contradictions in it. You restrict the size of the squad, you put a lot of regulatory constraints on that, but at the same time you ask the teams and the players to play more games. So, you know, something has to give.
Chairman, how disappointed were you losing the FA Cup to Manchester United?
Very disappointed. I think it was a game for sure everybody wanted to win. It's the FA Cup, it's against Manchester United, it's doing the double, back to back. So from that perspective, very disappointed. But always, you know, you have to think of the silver lining. You know, one of the things you always want to avoid is complacency. You never want to be content. You know, you want to keep that hunger. And there's always a silver lining — you have to find a silver lining after defeat, particularly. And you know, Pep obviously was very, very disappointed himself. And we had just won the league the week before, and to end on that note. And I spoke to many that day, and I told them: listen, sometimes a bad thing is a good thing. Maybe leaving with that feeling in our stomach of unfulfillment is going to help us a lot next season. Great season, yes, disappointed we lost at the end with the FA Cup. More importantly, now we come back hungrier because we want to win this again, and we want to go for the treble again, and we're going to try to win every competition we compete in. And I think this is, for me, that silver lining, which is: no complacency, no content, always hungry.
And we've not really mentioned the Club World Cup or gone into detail. What was it like watching City win that?
It's a great joy, and being able to compete with teams from all over the world outside Europe for a serious competition, and then winning that trophy — and now having that badge — is absolutely fantastic. I'm so, so proud of it. Having it for the rest of the season, this season, having it all of next season, and then the privilege now of qualifying to play in the next new edition of the Club World Cup is a great privilege.
What next? We've done four in a row, now we're going to go for five in a row. If we can talk about the women's team, Chairman, for a return to the top of the tree for them, but again agony on the last day of the season. How do you reflect on what they did this season, losing the league on goal difference on the last day of the season?
