Why Man Utd’s treble IS better than a season unbeaten.
Arsenal take on Manchester United this afternoon, with two of the biggest clubs in the Premier League renewing their rivalry.
As well as their own contests on the pitch that have been so enthralling down the years, these two sides also like to brag about their unique successes in English football history.
Arsenal are the only club in the modern era (and in a 38-game season) to go a whole league season without losing a single game, and their run of 49 league matches unbeaten is a record in this country.
While that is superb, here’s why Manchester United’s amazing success of winning the treble in 1999 is the superior achievement:
1) More games
It’s simple, but true, if you go all the way in both the FA Cup and Champions League, you’re playing more than just the 38 games Arsenal needed to play to win the Premier League in 2004. That Gunners side only got to the quarter-final stages in Europe and the semis of the FA Cup, meaning United will have had four more games on their schedule in the busiest, most important and most tiring stage of the football season.
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2) Better teams
While Arsenal arguably won a very weak Premier League in 2003/04, they were found wanting against the very best teams in Europe, losing against Inter Milan in the group stages and later to Chelsea in the quarter-finals. It’s all very well turning on the style against awful sides like Leeds and Middlesbrough, but Manchester United showed they could beat the best as they got past big names like Juventus and then Bayern Munich in the final to win the biggest club competition in the world.
3) No extra trophy for going unbeaten
Arsenal did actually get a small golden Premier League trophy in recognition of their unbeaten season, but it’s a one-off that doesn’t add any particular value. Manchester United, meanwhile, will point again to the simple fact that winning a treble brings you three of the biggest trophies in the game, while an unbeaten season gives you just one Premier League trophy to show for it.