Manchester City have broke Arsenal and Preston North End’s records after registering a 15th successive win in all competitions against Swansea in the FA Cup – the longest run by a top-flight side in English football history.
After two defeats earlier this season, City have been growing into their best form and have finally hit the highs expected from them.
They lead the Premier League by five points with a game in hand and, on Wednesday, cruised into the FA Cup quarter-finals with a 3-1 win at Swansea.
It was a history-making 15th win in a row and their 22nd unbeaten since a 2-0 defeat by Tottenham in November.
The previous best run of consecutive victories had been 14, achieved by Preston in 1891-92 and Arsenal in 1987.
Preston’s sequence, three years after their ‘Invincibles’ season, featured 12 league wins in succession followed by two FA Cup victories between October 1891 and January 1892.
They eventually finished runners-up in the First Division to Sunderland and were beaten in the FA Cup third round – then the quarter-finals – by Nottingham Forest.
Arsenal’s run came after they made an indifferent start to the 1987-88 season, winning just one of their opening five games. George Graham’s side hit form in September, winning 14 in a row until mid-November. 10 of the wins came in First Division fixtures, with the other four being in the League Cup. They finished sixth in the table that season and lost to Luton in the League Cup final.
