Not so long ago, in fact about 10 years ago, these two clubs that compete in the best football leagues were nothing more than two regular, mid-level clubs. For them, at that time, the dream of playing in UEFA Champions League (UCL) was just a dream that they hoped one day would come true.
The fact is that money can’t buy everything. However, from a football perspective, money actually can buy the best world players and coaches, trophies and fame.
This, at least, was the case with Manchester City F.C. and Paris Saint-Germain F.C. (PSG), the two teams supported by the money from the Middle East are now experiencing a renaissance of a kind. Success can’t be guaranteed just by investing a ton of money into something, yet their owners from the Emirates and Qatar respectively have managed to put all resources in the right place and, as a result, succeeded in bringing pure joy to their teams’ fans. By doing so, they helped the teams increase their income even more due to a huge rise in popularity, sponsorships, and competition prizes.
However, there is still one trophy that can’t be found among these clubs’ trophy showcases: the UEFA Champions League, a prestigious trophy that only one European team can lift during a single season.
Let’s revisit past a little bit more.
Manchester City F.C. – from Championship to Premier League winners
In the season 2000/01 Man City was relegated ranking 18th in total. The next season they managed to get back right in to the first division winning the 1st place in the League Division One (now known as the English League Championship).
After that, they were nothing more than a mid-table team finishing the 9th in the Premier League in season 2008/2009.
However, after that, with a helping hand from investors and their funding just a couple of seasons later, for the first time after the season 1967/1968, Manchester City has managed to win the English Premier League in 2011/12, and repeated the success once again in the season 2013/14.
Today, they are one of the top notch teams in England that is very difficult to beat and one that for the last 7 seasons has been playing a constant role in the UCL.
Paris Saint Germain F.C. – from a mid-table team to 4 consecutive titles
Before Qatar Sports Investments bought 71% of shares of PSG back in 2011, PSG was a mid-class team waiting for their chance to become legendary someday.
Winning the French League 1 only a couple of times (in seasons 1985/86 and 1993/94), the real success for PSG came after the buyout. Since 2011, PSG has won it all in France, finishing 4 consecutive times on top of the league and participating in every season in at least a group stage of the UCL.
During this time they featured some of the best players of the game, such as Ibrahimović, Cavani, Pastore, Motta, and, starting from this season, the legendary Dani Alves and biggest and most expensive signing so far Neymar.
Transfer market
Regarding the transfer market, a lot has changed in the past with these clubs spending over 100 million every season.
Only during this transfer window (season 2017/18), bringing names such as Mendy, Bernardo Silva, Ederson, Danilo and others, Man City has already spent over 220 million pounds with a tendency to spend even more, while PSG took Neymar over from Barcelona for an astronomical figure of 220 million euros, thus breaking the world record for a transfer free made for a single player.
Great future is in store for these two clubs and it’s only a matter of time before one of them is at the top of Europe, bringing home the prestigious UCL trophy.