Pep Guardiola insists not even winning the FA Cup would save their poor season.
City are 20 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool and out of the Champions League but reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with a 3-1 win over Plymouth on Saturday.
But while City could still end the season with a trophy, Guardiola insists it will not paper over the issues they have endured during an underwhelming campaign.
“It’s better to win the treble or quadruple, come on,” said Guardiola.
“This season, especially in two competitions, we’ve not been good. And that’s the reality.
“We didn’t qualify for the first time [for the last-16] of the Champions League since we are here, and in the Premier League with 13, 14, 15 games left we have no chance of winning [the title]. It’s never happened. The season has not been good.”
City avoided a shock against the Pilgrims after going 1-0 down at the Etihad but two goals from Nico O’Reilly and a third from Kevin de Bruyne prevented a repeat of Plymouth’s shock win over Liverpool in the fourth round.
Guardiola added: “I didn’t take anything for granted, when I saw how well they defended and the problems they created for Liverpool. They’re an incredibly solid team.
“We created a lot and conceded little – the basics we have done for many years. We’re happy to reach the quarter-finals and with the way we played.
“How many times in the last years have we reached the semi-finals? When you arrive six times in a row in the semi-finals, it’s because [the FA Cup] is important. When you play in this competition and you behave like the way we behave, I’m so proud – I love it.
“It shows how honest we are, and I like that. We’re one game away from Wembley and we’ll see what happens.”
