The Treble Elite: Where Arteta Could Rank Among Football's Greatest Managerial Achievements

Mikel Arteta could etch his name alongside the sport's managerial immortals should Arsenal complete an unlikely quadruple. But where exactly would the Spaniard stand among those who've already claimed treble glory?

The Gunners remain alive in four competitions—leading the Premier League while juggling Carabao Cup final duty, FA Cup quarter-final football, and Champions League last-16 action. Manchester City lurk alongside them, equally dangerous across all fronts.

Arteta's methods have drawn plenty of criticism along the way, yet silverware tends to quiet even the harshest voices. Should he steer Arsenal to their first European Cup alongside domestic honours, he'd join an exclusive club of managerial excellence. Here's how the Champions League era's treble winners stack up.

6. Hansi Flick – Bayern Munich 2019/20

Flick inherited a struggling Bayern in November, with the club languishing fourth. After two defeats in his opening four matches, the final loss arriving on 7 December, Bayern's transformation proved remarkable. They surrendered just two points across their remaining 60 available to clinch the Bundesliga by 13 points.

The backdrop, however, proved decidedly grim. Bayern's eighth consecutive title arrived behind closed doors as Covid ravaged Europe. The DFB Pokal followed suit—another ghost-ground victory, with Leverkusen falling in Berlin.

The pandemic appeared to suit Bayern's rhythm perfectly. They won every fixture following the resumption, a run stretching to 15 consecutive victories. Their Champions League campaign began in earnest against Chelsea in March, before the novelty eight-team knockout format in Lisbon took centre stage. Barcelona received a humbling 8-2 thrashing, Lyon proved little resistance in the semi-final, and Kingsley Coman's header settled matters against PSG. Bayern became the first side to win every single Champions League match en route to their second treble.

5. Jupp Heynckes – Bayern Munich 2012/13

Heynckes knew his Bayern tenure would conclude once Pep Guardiola arrived that summer, so he departed with characteristic style. As the first Bayern manager to secure a treble, his swansong season remains unforgettable.

The Bundesliga fell with remarkable ease—the title wrapped up by 6 April with six games remaining, a fortnight ahead of schedule, eventually by a record 25-point margin. The Champions League fixture arrived second in the treble sequence, with Borussia Dortmund providing considerably stiffer resistance than the domestic campaign suggested. Wembley hosted their showdown, yet Arjen Robben's 89th-minute strike proved decisive.

Berlin witnessed the finale against Stuttgart. Bayern appeared to have matters settled at 3-0 up, only for Stuttgart to mount a spirited comeback. Heynckes' men held firm for a 3-2 victory, allowing the German coach to walk away as the first to guide a German club to treble honours—a particularly satisfying conclusion given Bayern's runners-up finishes across all three competitions the previous season.

4. Jose Mourinho – Inter Milan 2009/10

Mourinho had already captured Serie A in his inaugural campaign at Inter—a routine achievement given the club's expectations. His second summer, however, proved transformative. He assembled a squad blending proven pedigree with players harbouring unfinished business.

Samuel Eto'o, Diego Milito, Thiago Motta, Lucio, and Wesley Sneijder arrived. Eto'o's recruitment followed Barcelona's pursuit of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a transfer Inter couldn't refuse financially. Suddenly, Mourinho possessed a world-class striker carrying genuine grievance, plus sufficient funds to reshape the entire operation following their group-stage European exit.

Mourinho crafted a compelling narrative: Inter against the world. Opponents, officials, the establishment itself—all became convenient adversaries. His players embraced the mentality entirely.

Beneath the theatre lay an uncomfortable truth: Inter rarely played particularly well that season. They limped through the group stage winning just two of six matches, then struggled domestically between January and April, collecting only five wins from 14 league fixtures.

Then Mourinho's big-game temperament emerged. Nine of their final ten league matches brought victories, with Barcelona's Nou Camp visit representing their sole defeat—yet Inter's defensive masterclass secured a 3-2 aggregate triumph despite the 1-0 scoreline. By the final in Madrid against Bayern, Mourinho had orchestrated everything perfectly. Milito's brace secured a 2-0 victory in what would be Mourinho's final Inter appearance before joining Real Madrid.

3. Sir Alex Ferguson – Manchester United 1998/99

"Football. Bloody hell!" Ferguson's immediate reaction captured the essence of United's extraordinary season perfectly—one culminating in an improbable Champions League triumph over Bayern Munich in Barcelona, with the Germans themselves pursuing treble glory.

Unlike Bayern, United had already secured the domestic double, making the Nou Camp showpiece their season's climax. Ferguson's legacy hung in the balance. He'd previously won doubles in 1994 and 1996, yet this third represented perhaps his most impressive—whether one credits his youth development or his ability to outmanoeuvre Arsene Wenger's Arsenal remains debatable.

Ferguson had to manage without Roy Keane and Paul Scholes against Ottmar Hitzfeld's outfit, and for long stretches, United appeared overawed by the occasion. Bayern appeared destined for victory until Ferguson's legendary resolve manifested through his substitutes, who conjured two added-time goals to deliver England's first treble in a manner that remains unmatched.

"They never give in—that's what won it," Ferguson reflected afterwards, having instilled an unbreakable mentality into a squad that refused defeat even when circumstances suggested otherwise.

2. Luis Enrique – Barcelona 2014/15, PSG 2024/25

The top tier necessarily accommodates both Enrique and Guardiola, each possessing two trebles to their credit.

Enrique's Barcelona debut season in 2014 proved explosive, introducing the world to MSN—Messi, Suarez, Neymar combining for 122 goals, with Suarez alone contributing 58. The campaign began uncertainly; Xavi's departure marked a significant transition, and doubts surrounded Messi's future during the opening months.

Their Champions League path proved anything but straightforward. They methodically dismantled the reigning champions from England's Premier League, France's Ligue 1, Germany's Bundesliga, and finally Italy's Serie A in the final itself.

His second treble arrived with PSG, their maiden European Cup triumph. Domestic dominance comes naturally to the Parisians, though an invincible season slipped away following April and May defeats in Ligue 1—casualties of their Champions League semi-final focus against Arsenal. PSG's continental pedigree had consistently disappointed, requiring qualification playoffs to escape their group before facing three Premier League representatives—Liverpool, Aston Villa, Arsenal—in knockout football. When the final arrived against Inter, PSG delivered their first European Cup by the largest winning margin ever recorded.

1. Pep Guardiola – Barcelona 2008/09, Manchester City 2022/23

Guardiola and Enrique both captured their maiden trebles managing brilliant Barcelona sides, yet their second achievements mirror each other in curious ways—both arrived while managing phenomenally wealthy, Gulf-state-backed clubs.

Joan Laporta immediately recognised Guardiola's impact following Barcelona's Rome triumph over Manchester United: "Pep in one year has really created a genius team. It has roots in Cruyff's philosophy but at the same time he himself has created something."

Guardiola credited attacking boldness: "If you attack and are daring you have more chances of winning. We have not been cowards, never. Without the ball we are a disastrous team, a horrible team, so we need the ball. We are not the best team in history but we have played the best season in history to win the three titles."

That Barcelona squad—featuring Messi, Eto'o, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Thierry Henry, Carles Puyol—possessed substance alongside aesthetics, with many still arguing they represent the finest team ever assembled.

Guardiola required considerably longer to extract a treble from Manchester City. He delivered domestic doubles and trebles, yet the Champions League remained elusive until Inter fell 1-0 in Istanbul during his seventh season.

Why does Pep edge Enrique despite their similar achievements? Primarily timing—he accomplished it first. Yet few would reasonably dispute that achieving domestic trebles proves considerably harder in England's Premier League than within PSG's Ligue 1 dominance.