Plenty has happened since Pep took charge back in July 2016!
To mark the occasion, here is a celebratory feature we first published last May...
The Catalan led us to a record-breaking fourth consecutive top-flight success with a 3-1 final day victory over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium.
It’s the first time in the history of English football any men’s side has won the league four years in a row.
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The trophy is his 17th major honour at City, extending his record as the Club’s most successful manager ever.
In terms of league titles, his haul of six is the joint-second most of any coach ever to take charge of an English side.
While Guardiola‘s style of football is appreciated the world over, it’s his relentless drive to succeed that keeps City at the peak of the game.
Having only missed out on top spot in two seasons, Guardiola has smashed records aplenty on his way to this remarkable level of dominance.
Just last month he reached 300 Premier League games in charge with a win record that put all of the division’s greatest managers in the shade.
He has now won 12 league titles in 15 seasons as a manager in a major European league, which is twice as many as the next best boss since 2008.
Here we’ll take a look at the standard City have set in Guardiola’s eight seasons in England…
Overall Premier League table
City have collected 716 points from 304 matches in those eight seasons, 59 more than the next best side - Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp, who Pep praised on Sunday, led his team to 657 points over the same period while Arsenal, in third, are 149 points behind City on 567.
Spurs (552), Chelsea and Manchester United (both 549) are the only other teams to have totalled over 500 points in those eight years.
Our total averages out at 89.5 points per season.
Guardiola’s first title in 2017/18 came with a Premier League points record as we racked up a century, an amazing 19 points better than second placed Manchester United.
We followed that success up in 2018/19 by edging out Liverpool to the title, claiming 98 points.
We were again far ahead of the competition in 2020/21, finishing 12 points ahead of Manchester United before another tense battle with Liverpool ended in a second title decided by just one point.
Our 2022/23 season saw us collect 89 points – five more than Arsenal in second before we surpassed 90 again with 91 this time around.
90+ points record
City have now accumulated at least 90 points in four seasons under Guardiola.
That is more than any other side in the Premier League has managed in the league’s entire history, with Liverpool and Chelsea both hitting that mark three times. Manchester United have done it twice and Arsenal once.
Our huge hauls came in 2017/18, 2018/19, 2021/22 and 2023/24.
Remarkably, before Guardiola arrived in England the 90 point mark had only ever been reached on five occasions - one of which came in 42-game season.
That shows the unbelievable standard our opponents have to reach if they want to take our crown from us.
Total wins
Our 225 wins in the 304 Premier League games we’ve played under Guardiola is 29 more than anyone else has achieved over the same period.
That’s a win percentage of74%, which is just fewer than three wins in every four games.
119 of our wins have come at the Etihad Stadium, which is seven more than next best Liverpool have accrued.
We’re the only side to have won more 100 games away from home in that time too, with 106 victories coming on the road.
Our 38 defeats is the fewest amongst all sides to have spent more than two campaigns in the top-flight over these eight years.
Goal difference
City have scored goals at a simply phenomenal rate under Guardiola‘s stewardship.
We have hit 755 in the 304 Premier League games the Catalan has overseen - a touch under 2.5 per game.
It is almost 100 more than Liverpool on 659, while Arsenal, Spurs and Chelsea are the only other sides to have hit more than 500.
At the other end, we’ve had the meanest defence with only 249 goals conceded.
Only Liverpool can also say they average less than one goal conceded per game, but they’re way behind us with their defence being breached 291 times.
That all leads to a simply astounding goal difference of +506. It greatly eclipses the rest of the league, with Liverpool next on +368 before Arsenal (+222) and Spurs (+212).
Everyone else has an overall goal difference since 2016 that is at least 300 worse off than City.
Possession
Retaining the ball is central to everything Guardiola asks his team to do.
That’s why it’s no surprise that we have had much of the ball than anyone else under his stewardship.
Our average possession of 66.79% means we are in control of the ball for more than two thirds of the time we are on the pitch.
That possession resulted in 184,204 completed passes in total, at an average of 23,025 per season and 606 per game.
Those figures are put into emphatic context when you see that Liverpool are 27,284 behind on 156,720.
Chelsea are just behind on 155,034 but then completing the top five are Arsenal (138,763) and Spurs (134,265) almost 50,000 passes behind.
Rodrigo (on 13,642) is third for all Premier League players who have completed the most passes over that period, despite not arriving until the start of Guardiola‘s fourth campaign.
Clean sheets
City have kept 133 clean sheets in our 304 league games under Pep at an average of one shutout every 2.28 outings.
Five sides have kept more than 100 clean sheets in that, but no team can match City’s figure.
112 of our 133 are credited to Ederson, who has been Guardiola‘s first choice between the sticks for seven years now.
The Brazilian, one of the best goalkeepers the league has ever seen, currently ranks 15th in terms of total clean sheets in a Premier League career.
In his time in Manchester, he has won the Golden Glove three times - a figure no other shot stopper can match.
Most goals
Raheem Sterling remains our leading scorer in the Premier League under Guardiola, scoring 85 times.
However, Erling Haaland is now fast approaching that tally with 63 in just two seasons.
The Norwegian has won the Golden Boot in both of his campaigns so far, including a record breaking 36 in 2022/23.
Most appearances
Ederson is Guardiola‘s most selected player, with the trusted goalkeeper playing 250 of the 64 games.
Although rested on occasion, the Brazilian is as close to a guarantee in City’s league team as you can have when he’s fit.
Bernardo Silva, renowned for his incredible stamina, is next with 233 appearances and Kevin De Bruyne is just on his tail on 232.
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De Bruyne is the only player still at the Club who was already here when Guardiola joined in 2016.
The Belgian is one of six men to have been part of all six titles under the boss along with Ederson, Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva, John Stones and Kyle Walker.
Most assists
Kevin De Bruyne has been far and away the Premier League’s most creative player since Guardiola‘s arrival in England.
The Catalan has got the best out of the Belgian, with De Bruyne registering 102 assists in eight seasons.
That is 34 clear of the nearest challenger in Mo Salah on 68 and 41 more than Heung-min Son on 61.
Overall, De Bruyne now has 112 assists in the Premier League - the second most of any player in the division’s history.
Club records under Pep
Guardiola has now won 17 major honours as City boss - 12 more than the Club’s next most successful manager Joe Mercer.
Guardiola is the first City boss to win the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
City’s 1-0 win over Chelsea in September 2021 was Pep’s 221st as boss – more than any other manager in the Club’s history.
top-flight/Premier League records under Pep
City are the first men’s team in the entire history of the English top-flight to win the title in four consecutive seasons.
City have reached 90 points in the Premier League four times - more than anyone else. Chelsea and Liverpool have reached that landmark three times.
Our 100 points in 2017/18 remains the Premier League’s greatest tally ever - including when the league comprised of 42 matches not 38.
Guardiola won 704 points in his first 300 Premier League matches, which is 70 more than next best Jose Mourinho.
He became the fastest manager in Premier League history to earn 500 points when City drew 1-1 with Southampton in January 2022 (his 213th game.)
We are the only English top-flight team to score 100 goals at home in a single season in all competitions, doing so twice (2018/19 and 2022/23).
Our 14 consecutive wins to end the 2018/19 Premier League season is the longest run of victories at the end of a campaign.
City’s 4-0 win over Newcastle in December 2021 was our 34th of that calendar year – a new English football record for the most top-flight wins in a calendar year.
It was also our 18th away league win of the year - more than any other top-flight side has managed in the history of English football.
