FA Cup final day has arrived, the 143rd installment of this historic competition will soon have it’s conclusion. Manchester City take on rivals Manchester United, meaning a back-to-back Manchester Derby in the FA Cup final. Last year Man City came out on top thanks to Ilkay Gundogan’s brace and will be favourites to do the same this year to complete a domestic double.
It’s been another incredible season for Pep Guariola’s side, who made history on Sunday by winning their fourth league title in a row. Man United on the other hand, have endured another poor season, finishing eighth, their lowest league finish in history. It seems that Erik Ten Hag’s time at Old Trafford is up, with reports suggesting he will be sacked after the final.
Man City beat Chelsea 1-0 to reach the final, Bernardo Silva’s goal made the difference late on. The Portuguese forward was also responsible for their quarter-final victory, he scored a brace against Newcastle in a fairly dull affair at the Etihad. In the three rounds prior to that, the Cityzens scored 12 goals against their opponents Huddersfield, Tottenham and Luton.
The Red Devils had a less straight-forward journey to the final, although they did eventually manage to overcome Championship side Coventry in the penalty shoot-out at Wembley for the semi-final. It’s been entertaining to say the least, particularly the quarter-final tie against Liverpool where Amad Diallo scored a last minute winner in extra time. Before those classics though, they enjoyed victories against Wigan, Newport Country and Nottingham Forest.
Embed from Getty ImagesHarry Maguire has been battling a muscle injury in recent weeks and has failed to win his race against fitness to be in contention for this afternoon’s match. Manchester United also remain without left-backs Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia, but Ten Hag revealed Mason Mount, Victor Lindelof and Anthony Martial are all available.
Harry Maguire has been battling a muscle injury in recent weeks and has failed to win his race against fitness to be in contention for this afternoon’s match.
Ederson fractured his eye socket against Spurs in the penultimate game of the league campaign so Stefan Orgeta will start in goal for City. Aside from that there’s no other urgent injury news from the City camp.
Embed from Getty ImagesGuardiola believes making more history is “extra motivation” for his group of players as they prepare for the match. He said: “If history gives us a chance to do something not done before, try it”.
City are aiming to win the FA Cup for the eighth time in history and the first ever in consecutive years, it looks a likely task to achieve, especially considering they are unbeaten in their last 35 matches across all competitions.
Today’s match will kick off at 3pm GMT at Wembley. Will Man City do the double over their rivals, or will Ten Hag end his United tenure with some silverware?
Embed from Getty ImagesWritten by Isabelle Newnham
INMR FOOTBALL 
Leave a comment