As Rico Lewis began his journey to a career with Manchester City at the age of eight, it coincided with the club’s rise to heights from which they have rarely fallen.
When he joined, City were Premier League champions for the first time in 2012 and would soon displace their neighbors United as not only masters of Manchester, but as the leading lights in English football with five more titles since.
For a 10th consecutive season — since United last won the league in 2013 — City will also finish above them in the division once dominated by the Red Devils under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Pep Guardiola’s side also have the chance emulate United’s feat of winning the treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same season, cementing their status as one of football’s greatest teams.
The 18-year-old Lewis was born in Bury, a town in the borough of Greater Manchester, five years after United’s historic 1999 treble. And he told Arab News exclusively: “Times change, there’s not always going to be one thing forever.
“Stuff has to change and luckily for us, it’s changed for the better (with City winning trophies now).
“I’ve got friends on both sides of the fence. That’s how it was growing up in school, some people would be United, some would be City. But for me, it was pretty decent back then because City were winning stuff — it was all right for me.”
Lewis can conclude a fairytale season by helping City claim that elusive treble, which includes a first Manchester derby in an FA Cup final on June 3.
“Of course I’d love the trophies, but my focus is on staying with this team and being with them for as long as I can,” added the versatile fullback, who made his debut last August.
“For me to be even around this team, it’s just amazing. It’s an added bonus to have the three trophies to go for. It’s been an amazing season for me.
“The FA Cup final — we will look at it as just another final, but for it to be a derby will be special and it shows how good both Manchester teams are doing. It’s also going to be just as competitive as a derby is in the Premier League.
“When I went to the semifinal against Sheffield United, it was my first time going into the stadium. It was a great feeling, I was buzzing. To come on in the game as well, it’s something I won’t forget for the rest of my life.”
Lewis has already experienced City cup success from the stands.
“My first memory of any cup final was the City one, the Capital One (League Cup) final in 2014 against Sunderland, when Yaya Toure scored the first goal. That’s the first one I can think of and seeing Wembley.”
Another Wembley trip will have to wait, though, as Lewis and City look to maintain their challenge in the two other competitions.
On Sunday they visit Everton in the Premier League, hoping to stay ahead of Arsenal at the top, and then host Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League semifinal on Wednesday, with the tie evenly poised after a 1-1 draw in the Spanish capital.
Having established their dominance on the domestic front, a first Champions League has long been a target for the City players — and Lewis is no different.
He made history in the competition back in November when, aged 17 years and 346 days, he became the all-time youngest scorer making a first start in a Champions League match — surpassing Karim Benzema’s record.
“I’d love to win all of the trophies, but the biggest one for me would be the Champions League,” added Lewis, whose father Rick is a British Thai boxing champion and owns a gym in Manchester.
“It’s what has always stood out for me, what you’ve been watching, when you come home late at night and the Champions League would be on TV.
“It’s everything, the music, the ball. The best players involved at the time — that makes it all special.
“It’s something you dream of winning when you are young, the trophy, how significant it is. City are already a great team, but in this day and age you need some accolades like the Champions League to get that status.”
Lewis was on the bench in Madrid as Guardiola made no substitutions — the first manager since Ferguson in 2007 against AC Milan to not make a single change in a Champions League semifinal.
But he should figure at Goodison Park, having been praised recently by Guardiola for playing a vital role in their title comeback.
Lewis, who has stepped in for Kyle Walker and Joao Cancelo, was used in an “inverted” fullback role that saw him often move into midfield to help City control possession.
“It’s thanks to Rico — he helped us to understand what we had to do to play better and better,” said Guardiola. “Without Rico this season, the step we made as a team would have been more difficult.”
With a sheepish smile, a humble Lewis, who has also been tipped for an England call-up, added: “I didn’t know that and haven’t heard it. It’s a nice comment but I don’t think it’s true. It is really nice to hear though.
“This is what I want more of, that’s what I dream of, to be a regular in this team as long as I can be. That will be the goal for my whole career.
“You can never stop, you have to keep on adapting and stay at this level. You don’t get a rest from this or anything like that.
“It’s something I’ve done in the academy and then since I’ve come into the first team, it’s been pretty much my main role. It’s about Pep teaching me and me learning from other players in the team.
“It will still take a while to understand just how good they are, but for me to see it firsthand is amazing - they’re such a top-quality team.
“What stands out the most is just how connected everyone is. There might be a player on the other side of the pitch but they know the patterns and everything that’s going to happen to get there. The level of knowledge they all have is amazing and that desire to win — to come back in the league, they’ve been in these title races for years so they know what they are doing.
“They’ve got the maturity that if situations go bad, they can turn it around. That’s how good they are.”
