Richard Dunne Reveals What Man City Need to Do in Order to Become 'Premier League Greats'
Former Manchester City defender Richard Dunne has discussed the key difference between the side he played in to Pep Guardiola's current squad, as well as what they need to do to be considered a great club.
The central defender made 344 appearances for the Citizens during his nine-year stint at the club, with one of those games coming against City's Champions League round of 16 opponents Schalke.
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City won on that occasion 2-0 in the UEFA Cup in 2008 to book their place in the last 32, and speaking exclusively to the Grand National ahead of their second leg at the Etihad - with the Premier League side boasting a 3-2 aggregate lead - Dunne has revealed the major difference between the two squads.
He said: "Our team in 2009 was a million miles away from the level Manchester City are at now. Manchester United were one of the strongest teams in the world at the time, and had all the money.
"Arsenal and Liverpool were up there. It’s taken a huge investment, but it’s incredible the level City are at now."
After already securing the EFL Cup earlier in the season, City are chasing an unprecedented quadruple, with the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League up for grabs, although the former Republic of Ireland international believes success in Europe is the club's primary goal.
He added: "Champions League success is the goal for Man City, they won the Premier League and the Carabao Cup last season. The first leg result against Schalke showed they’ve now got the resilience to win away games in Europe in difficult situations."
City have certainly enjoyed plenty of success since the arrival of Sheikh Mansour in 2008, with the club winning three Premier League titles, four EFL Cups and an FA Cup as a result of his investment.
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With Guardiola at the helm and one of Europe's most talented squads at his disposal, Dunne believes consistency is now the key for City to be considered one of the best teams on the continent.
He concluded, stating: "Man City need consistency over five, ten years to become one of the Premier League greats. But the more trophies they win, the more history they will create and the bigger the fanbase they’ll generate. Not just to become biggest club in England but the biggest in Europe."
