Pep Guardiola has said there is ‘something special’ about his Manchester City side as the club chase back-to-back trebles this season.
City moved into the FA Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 win over Newcastle at the Etihad on Saturday, as Bernardo Silva’s brace booked the holders a place in the last four.
The Citizens also remain in contention for the Premier League title and Champions League, where they will face Real Madrid in the quarter-finals of the latter competition next month.
Guardiola’s team completed a historic treble of all three competitions last season and are aiming to defend each of those titles this time around.
The club’s win over Newcastle saw City become the first team in history to reach six successive FA Cup semi-finals and Guardiola says the consistency of his team is ‘something special’.
“To expect [to be] coming back from the last international break with two months left and be in contention for all the titles means a lot,” the Spaniard said at his post-match press conference.
“People talk about the Premier League and Champions League but when you win four Carabao Cups in a row and get to six FA Cup semi-finals in a row, this team and this club has something special.
“We want to win all of them but sometimes it is not possible because of the quality of the opponents and the schedule we have.
“I remember playing away in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and then at Wembley is so difficult.
“To arrive in your best condition in those situations is difficult but we were there.
“Always you can have a bad night but when you have six times in a row [FA Cup semi-finals], you have less bad nights.
“This is the consistency that proves people who doubt the team wrong.”
