The 17th of April will be a day etched in the minds of Manchester City fans and players alike as VAR denied them of passage into the Champions League semi-finals after Sergio Aguero was caught offside before setting up Raheem Sterling for the winner late on.
It was yet another disappointing season in Europe for the Citizens and they took that anger out on England as a whole.
They won all the domestic titles available to be crowned kings of England. They also successfully defended their Premier League title after a season-long battle with eventual European Champions Liverpool who they edged out by a single point.
Last year they reigned supreme domestically, but this year there may be a shift in the goals of the Mancunian Club to the European stage.
Manchester City have yet to make a significant impact in Europe since Arab money arrived with only one appearance in the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2016 where they were knocked out by eventual champions Real Madrid.
Three years on and they haven’t even reached that stage of the tournament since.
Manager Pep Guardiola personally has not won the Champions League since his treble triumph in 2011 eight seasons ago.
He might deny it but his hands must be itching to lift that trophy once again. Serial winners are always thirsty for victory and the Spaniard is a serial winner.
The squad might share that hunger as well. The team know what it means to be League champions but there isn’t a European champion among them.
They know they are good enough to go toe to toe with the best of the best teams the competition has to offer and will be hungry to bring the elusive title to the Etihad this season.
Not too many players are actually good enough or smart enough to play for Manchester City but they did strengthen their squad.
Yes, they signed just one player but they strengthened in a key position and that was in defensive midfield where they looked vulnerable at times last season.
The presence of two defensive midfielders and mind you, Fernandinho hasn’t kicked a ball this season, means that the squad has no weaknesses and can compete strongly no matter the eleven on the pitch in any competition.
Last season, English clubs dominated in all levels of European competition and it would have been difficult to think that Manchester City wouldn’t have been part of that dominance.
This season they will be looking to make things right and bring the Champions League home maybe even at the cost of other competitions.
