As the reigning European champions, Man City will be one of the favourites to claim this season’s Champions League title too.
After a slight wobble in the Premier League earlier in the season, Pep Guardiola’s side now sit atop the English top-flight after Tottenham’s first loss of the season against Chelsea on Monday night.
Though there’s plenty of time left in the season for City to falter in Europe, the chances of them not finishing in the top three by season’s end is very low indeed.
Assuming that they qualify for Europe’s premier competition once again in 2024/25, they’ll surely be hoping that La Liga side, Girona, see a significant dip in their own form this season.
That’s because the Catalan minnows, owned by the City Football Group, are currently top of the Spanish top flight having won 10 drawn one and lost one of their 12 games.
Significantly, they’ve outscored both Real Madrid and Barcelona and aren’t in top spot by luck or chance.
At present, as Sport Bible note, UEFA rules are such that owners are not allowed to field multiple teams in the same competition.
That would preclude one or the other side from entering the competition unless, for example, City Group decide to withdraw their ownership of Girona.
CFG own 47% of Girona with Pep’s brother Pere Guardiola owning the rest as part of Girona Football group. Without a controlling 51% share there’s no conflict of interest and both teams could qualify and play in the competition, much like Red Bull have this season with RB Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg.
Manchester, known for its recent dominance in the English Premier League under the ownership of the City Football Group . The club’s modern success has been built on substantial investment in top-tier talent and a state-of-the-art stadium, the Etihad Stadium.