Paul Merson picks best treble-winning side as Man City close in on matching Manchester United achievement

Former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson believes a treble-winning season for Manchester City would eclipse the achievements of Manchester United's 1999 side.

City are on course to claim three major trophies this season, with Pep Guardiola's side top of the Premier League with three games left, in the FA Cup final and favourites to win the Champions League following their semi-final first leg 1-1 draw at Real Madrid on Tuesday.

Should they go all the way, then it would equal the feat achieved by Sir Alex Ferguson's United side in 1999, who claimed the third and final trophy in a dramatic 2-1 Champions League final win over Bayern Munich. But looking back on the run, Merson claimed the Reds were lucky in how things came together.

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The final in Barcelona saw United outplayed for 90 minutes before injury-time goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer turned the tide instantly. And Merson pointed to a missed penalty from Dennis Bergkamp in the FA Cup semi-final and a shock Gunners defeat against Leeds in the league as more evidence of their fortunes.

"Everyone goes on about how great it was, because of how dramatic the comeback was in the Champions League final," Merson told GiveMeSport. "But United were so close to winning nothing. It was all on a knife-edge.

"This season doesn’t feel like it’s ever really been on a knife-edge for Manchester City, does it? This City team have never been anywhere near close to winning nothing. They have been head and shoulders above everyone else all season.

"So for me, there is no comparison. This would be the bigger achievement. City have dominated teams this season. They slaughtered Bayern at home.