Manchester City's celebrations from their remarkable Treble triumph may have only just ended but now next season's Premier League fixtures have been released.
City's season came to a close just five days ago and it couldn't have ended in better fashion as they defeated Inter to win the Champions League and secure the Treble. Pep Guardiola has hardly had enough time to get the golf clubs out and unwind after such a gruelling campaign before the next one has appeared on the horizon.
The Premier League has released the fixtures for the upcoming 2023/24 season and here are five key dates for Blues fans to stick on the calendar.
1 - Opening game
City will take part in the first match of the season as they get their title defence underway with a trip to Burnley on Friday, August 11. Kick-off is at 8pm.
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It's a fitting start to the season as it will see City once again reunited with iconic captain Vincent Kompany, who guided the Clarets to an emphatic Championship win in his first season. However, his side did lose 6-0 to City in the FA Cup.
2 - A terrible run kicks off
Though it's hard to ever look past the Manchester derbies, the fixtures City might be concerned by most are their clashes with Arsenal. The Gunners were City's only real challengers last season and it was the resounding 4-1 win in April that all but secured the title.
The two teams didn't play each other in the league until February due to the fixture being postponed but should face off much earlier this time around with the first meeting scheduled for October 7 at the Emirates.
The match will kick off a horrible run of fixtures for Guardiola's side as they then go on to face Brighton, Manchester United, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Aston Villa in a row. That's before the midweek Champions League and Carabao Cup games are added, too.
3 - The dreaded trip to Spurs
City have travelled to Tottenham's new stadium five times since it opened and they have lost five times. In fact, they haven't even managed to score a single goal there.
The first of those played a part in a heartbreaking elimination from the Champions League but the rest have, thankfully, come in the Premier League and too early in the season to have much of an impact. This time around, though, they will travel to North London right at the business end of the season on the weekend of April 20. Another loss there at such a crucial time could be very costly.
4 - The big rivalries
The first Manchester derby of the season will be at Old Trafford on the weekend of October 10, with the reverse coming at the Etihad on the weekend of March 2. The Blues will face Liverpool at home first initially penned in for November 25 and will head to Anfield a week after the second derby on March 9.
The second match with Arsenal will also come at a crucial point in the season on the weekend of March 30.
5 - Final game
After finishing last season away at Brentford and having to lift the title with two games still remaining, City will be thankful to have the final game of the season at home this time around. The season will come to a close on May 19, 2024 with the Blues taking on West Ham United.
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