"If Manchester City win the treble, what is your next target?"
That was the fairly standard question for Pep Guardiola last month, before City went on to secure the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League trophies to make history. Guardiola was clearly in a good mood, as he smiled and jokingly replied: "To score a goal at Tottenham away."
The joke masks an ongoing run of poor performances at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where City have lost every time they have visited, with away fans yet to celebrate a goal.
When City next travel to Spurs in the Premier League, they may do so knowing they must win to win the Premier League. The fixture computer couldn't have placed that particular game at a more inconvenient time for Guardiola.
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For a start, Guardiola has earmarked the third weekend in April as a problematic one for some time. Coming just after the Champions League quarter-final second leg, that weekend often sees City get back to domestic action in the FA Cup semi-finals. Until this year, when they faced Sheffield United of the Championship, they had fallen short and failed to keep up momentum, for three years straight.
Guardiola was aware that the mental and physical exertions of the Champions League quarter-finals had a knock-on effect in the next game, so was delighted when City ended that particular hoodoo this season.
In 2023/24, when City will be aiming to arrive in April still in all three competitions, maybe that mysterious fixture computer was listening to Guardiola by placing Tottenham vs Manchester City on April 20.
Assuming that City are still in Europe at that point, they will either face Spurs away in the league that weekend - directly after the Champions League quarter-final - or will be at Wembley for a semi-final.
Spurs away is the trickiest fixture of a fairly favourable run-in, although their March is ridiculously difficult. History suggests they will be fighting for the Premier League title at that stage of the season, knowing any slip-up could lose them a fourth title in a row. So if the Spurs game has to be moved, it may only be able to be played in the final week of the campaign.
The midweek directly afterwards is free, but unlikely to host Spurs vs City for logistical reasons. The equivalent fixture this season - Brighton away - was held in the final midweek slot of the campaign, days before the last day of the season. If City get to the Champions League semi-finals again, Spurs will have to be moved to directly before the last day against West Ham at home.
They could conceivably go to Spurs needing to win to secure the title or keep their title hopes alive. Not the easiest task at a ground that has proven so difficult on so many visits.
Guardiola knows how difficult it is to maintain momentum across different competitions at the business end of the season. He will be already concerned that a potential Champions League last-16 tie will be played around league games against Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Brighton in a very tricky March.
Their group stage games come either side of fixtures with Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Spurs, too, among others. On one hand, City must play every team twice, on the other, the fixture list has arguably landed as difficult as it could possibly be.
City's brilliance comes from taking one game at a time, and that mantra will be imperative next season. When they travel to Tottenham, though, there could be so more on the line than simply three points.
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