Pep's Greatest Game

[Bellamy's Caddy]

He text wio before the game, telling him we are going to beat them tonight. He could smell it :)

It was interesting hearing Noel Gallagher say the Centurians season during pre season Pep told him training was going well and he thought we'd win the league! Amazing that he just knew.

 

[M Gaudino]

in terms of pure football, away at the Emirates in a freezing cold London three days i think after we pumped them in the league cup 3-0. Again a 0-3 scoreline and the passing and movement from the forward 6 was unbelievable. sterling was injured so it was Eddy, Walker, Kompany, Otamendi, Danilo. Gundogan, Silva, De Bruyne, Aguero, Bernie, Sane. Stones, Lapprte and Bravo and Phil left on the bench with Zinchenko, Jesus and Yaya coming on

 

[Sky Blue]

That’s how I remember it. I rang my dad straight after and said “That’s the best City performance I have ever seen” and he agreed. We’d all seen it building, even during his first season (I seem to remember winning 6-0 at Watford in the final game) but that was when we made the football world stand up and take notice.

I was thinking about that Watford game 5 minutes before you posted. It really was a WOW game for me that something was brewing.

 

[burning blue soul]

I couldn't believe what I was witnessing in the Madrid game, just stunning. I'd also make a strong case for the Liverpool game in January 2019. The occasion, the atmosphere, what was at stake, the levels those two incredible teams reached - and whatever we all think of them and their fans especially that Liverpool team was absolutely unbelievable. Utterly brilliant match, totally draining. Vinnie standing over Salah bellowing at him after he'd cleaned him out. The Stones 11mm clearance. Leroy's winner. And I've still got no idea how Sergio just battered the first goal past Alisson where there was no space. What a game, what a night.

The Madrid game was the best performance by an English team ever.
The best all round high quality game I've ever seen is the 2-1 victory over the scousers.
It was two teams at their peak playing the beautiful game perfectly.

Those are the highest points in a decade of high points.

 

[Kinkybyname]

 

[Didsbury Dave]

I was thinking about that Watford game 5 minutes before you posted. It really was a WOW game for me that something was brewing.

I watched it on an iPad in the shade of an umbrella with my best mate, having a beer and a spliff, with my rods out on a Norfolk gravel pit the day after I caught a 46lb carp. Great memory.

 

[Ithryn Luin]

Got to be the 4-0 especially the first half when Madrid could not live with us.

In a footballing sense the 0-3 away to Arsenal in 2018 was majestic and Sane's third goal incredible in terms of pass and move.

 

[jaiguruKun]

The 7-2 against Stoke was the moment I think that people realised something really special was coming.

In terms of pure entertainment and quality, the 2-1 v Liverpool in 2019 and CL second leg v Madrid in 2023.

 

[Leroy Leroy Leroy]

Honourable mention to the first half of the rags 6-3 win. Remember saying at the time that's maybe the best half I've ever seen

 

[David Silva]

I’m going to go for a game that not many people will even think of.

City 4 - 2 Spurs February 2023 (I think)

Losing 2-0 at half time, Spurs doing their usual number on us. 115 charges had just been released and Arsenal were numerous points in front of us, title challenge seemed dead. The club seemed dead. The second half we twatted them, and it ignited something inside the club to go on the most memorable run in our history. The game changed everything.

Come to think of it, there was so many games during that run in that were memorable. Beating Arsenal 4-1 was unbelievable, followed by a few weeks later the demolishing of Madrid. Never heard our ground so loud.

Similarly a game that felt like a catalyst in that run in for me was the 7-0 Leipzig home game. We’d been a bit shit really until early 2023 as you’ve said, and had only managed a draw in the first leg at their place. Then we suddenly demolished RBL to move into the quarters, the rest was history. We were flying for the rest of that CL campaign. Haaland and KDB were bang up for it that night, poor Josko didn’t know what had hit him..

 

[69FACUPfinal]

Whilst it wasn’t the best performance of the Pep era, I will always remember going to Stamford Bridge in his second season, when they were reigning champions, and just pressing the life out of them and dominating the game. That was when I knew We had reached a new level .

I agree. That game and the screamer of a goal from King KDB, I knew then we would win the league. We dismantled the current PL champions.

The Madrid game, the Liverpool Jan 19 game, and what about Stoke 7-2 and that inch perfect pass from Kev to Leroy.

Oh we have been so fortunate. I'm still having tear outbursts, I've really experienced grief in my life, and this is a similar mild version, it will pass, but it's painful at the moment.

 

[madloaf]

Honourable mention to the first half of the rags 6-3 win. Remember saying at the time that's maybe the best half I've ever seen

Absolutely. We embarrassed them that day.

 

[TonyColemansbagofapples]

Apart from the obvious one's going to arsenal and absolutely schooling them a few days after beating them at Wembley brings a smile.
The half empty stadium emptied further after 30 minutes.
Think this was prime city at our best.

Being very kind there, don't reckon it was anywhere near half full. The away end was full though.

 

[1961_vintage]

The Madrid game was the best performance by an English team ever.
The best all round high quality game I've ever seen is the 2-1 victory over the scousers.
It was two teams at their peak playing the beautiful game perfectly.

Those are the highest points in a decade of high points.

Yeah spot-on there bbs.

 

[JOGAMIGMOG]

4-0 Madrid has to be one of the greatest performances by an English football team of all time. Hard to think of a better one by anybody. It was poetry.

 

[Eric Hitchmough]

Hard to look past the 4-0 v Madrid.

Obviously the final is the one that got the money off our back, but the 4-0 was one of the most complete performances the sport has ever witnessed.

 

[jimharri]

Has to be THAT Madrid game. Nothing before or since has come anywhere near it. No, not even the final.

 

[supercity88]

Absolutely. We embarrassed them that day.

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That should have been 8-0! The fact we let them score 3 was a huge disappointment!

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

There's been so many. The Real Madrid 4-0 stands out of course, but there's the 3-0 vs Bayern in the QF. Some others:

• The 3-1 vs Barcelona in his first season.
• The 7-2 vs Stoke, 5-0 vs Liverpool and 3-0 at the Emirates in 2017/18, plus the historic 4-2 in Napoli, when Sergio became record goalscorer.
• The 2-1 vs Liverpool and the 6-0 vs Chelsea in 2018/19, as well as the FA Cup Final vs Watford.
• In 2019/20, although not our best season, 5-0 in the opening game at West Ham, 8-0 vs Watford, another 3-0 win at Arsenal (and the same score at the Etihad), 4-0 vs Liverpool and the 2-1 at the Bernabeu.
• In 2020/21 the 4-1 away wins vs Arsenal in the League Cup and Liverpool in the PL, plus the ding-dong 4-3 at Newcastle.
• The 3-2 vs Villa to win the PL in 2022, the 5-0 vs Arsenal early in the season plus the 4-3 win vs Real Madrid in the first leg of the CL SF (which we shamefully threw away in Madrid).
• In 2022/23 the first 80 minutes of the 6-3 vs united and the second half of the 4-2 vs Spurs, the 4-1 vs Liverpool. The FA Cup final and of course those 4 CL games against Bayern & Real Madrid. I have to say that the Inter game wasn't a great one by any standard but the result was all that counted.
• The cracks were beginning to show in 2023/24 but the 2-0 win at Spurs was epic.

 

[supercity88]

Has to be THAT Madrid game. Nothing before or since has come anywhere near it. No, not even the final.

It's one of the greatest performances from any side in history considering before the game absolutely no one would have expected it.

No one but Pep of course. And I've seen the players in the treble documentary talk about how his confidence had consumed them, they knew we would beat them at home too. We tore them apart.

For them not to have the ball in our half for 20 odd minutes is something beyond comprehension.