Chelsea Face Manchester City In Huge FA Cup Final Showdown (CHELSEA 0-1 MANCHESTER CITY)

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Manchester City Beat Chelsea To Complete Domestic Double

CHELSEA 0-1 MANCHESTER CITY

The fourth official indicates five minutes will be added to the end of the FA Cup final for stoppages!

OVER! Gusto receives the ball from Fernandez on the flank ahead of O’Reilly and steps inside before curling a lovely, left-footed cross towards the penalty spot for Delap, who cranes his neck to prod his header just above the frame of the goal!

Moisés Caicedo

Cherki cuts inside from the right and somewhat unexpectedly plays the ball across the edge of the penalty area for O’Reilly, who wasn’t expecting the service. The miscommunication allows Caicedo to step forward and stab it away - though possession lands right back with Manchester City near the centre-circle.

Reece James OFF Liam Delap IN

This game needed something a little unorthodox to open things up, and Antoine Semenyo provided. What a finish that was!

It’s shaping up to be a frenetic end to the FA Cup, as Chelsea are now sensing that time is quickly beginning to run out. MacFarlane’s side are throwing everything and everyone they can forward, looking to overload the 18-yard box and overwhelm both Khusanov and Guehi, while Manchester City are desperate to get their foot on the ball and halt some of the building momentum.

A bit of confusion in the Chelsea ranks allows Doku to slip a disguised ball into the 18-yard box for O’Reilly, who carries it towards the frame of the goal unimpeded before hitting a pass back towards the penalty spot that’s put too far behind the oncoming forwards.

Marc Cucurella OFF Pedro Lomba Neto IN

A GOAL WORTHY OF ANY CUP FINAL! A SPECIAL FINISH PUTS MANCHESTER CITY AHEAD! 1-0! In a pocket of space 30 yards from goal, Haaland interchanges with Silva before receiving the ball back inside the penalty area on the right side. With no room to shoot, the striker drops his shoulder and plays a first-time pass to the edge of the six-yard box for Semenyo, who rolls Colwill and deposits a sublime backheel finish into the bottom corner!

Antoine Semenyo

Cherki leaves Manchester City’s latest corner-kick for Silva, who goes direct, but the delivery is beaten away easily by Fofana with nobody else in the area ready to contest.

Gusto wraps his foot around the ball to curl a low pass into the 18-yard box and towards the penalty spot for Joao Pedro. The striker falls after a bit of hand-fighting with Khusanov, allowing Trafford to take charge of the situation, but the touch is not enough for a spot-kick to be awarded according to the referee and video assistants.

Rodrigo Hernández Cascante Mateo Kovacic

James has the space to turn with the ball in midfield before looking to fire a clever pass through the lines for Palmer that’s cut out by a sliding Guehi just ahead of the 18-yard box.

Abdukodir Khusanov

Trafford receives a straightforward pass back from Guehi but waits too long to hit the ball back out to the right, which gives Chelsea a corner-kick from nothing.

Colwill takes a risk near his own penalty spot, letting the ball roll across him while he looks for a passing option. Sensing an opportunity to pounce, Semenyo rushes forward and tries to catch the defender in possession but he’s a bit too physical in his attempt - giving away a free-kick.

OVER THE CROSSBAR! SO CLOSE! Cherki’s first involvement in the match is a lovely pass out to the flank for the unmarked O’Reilly, who teases an inviting cross to the edge of the six-yard box. With Hato waiting, Semenyo rises high over the back of the defender and makes contact first, nodding his close-range header narrowly over the bar!

A change at the half for Manchester City sees Cherki take Marmoush’s spot in attack.

Manchester City get the match restarted from the kick-off!

CHELSEA 0-0 MANCHESTER CITY

NO PENALTY! Joao Pedro goes down inside the 18-yard box, denied an opportunity to shoot by Khusanov’s powerful shoulder-to-shoulder challenge. With a good vantage point of the situation, Darren England immediately rejects the fervent appeals and allows play to continue, with VAR eventually confirming the decision!

The fourth official indicates three minutes will be added to the end of the half for stoppages.

GREAT STOP! Guehi finally gets the weight on his pass out from the back perfect, firing the ball through the lines for the run of Haaland, who gathers it in stride ahead of Hato before guiding a left-footed effort towards goal that’s repelled by the legs of the goalkeeper!

James’ outswinging corner is glanced away initially by Haaland, who can only put the ball as far as Cucurella 20 yards from goal. The wing-back charges onto it, looking to hit a venomous first-time effort, but he gets his contact all wrong and gives Semenyo a chance to get in the way.

Marc Cucurella

Haaland has never scored in a final for Manchester City, playing in nine showpiece events and producing 15 shots without success. He has also never scored in eight games at Wembley for City.

Enzo Fernández

James and Palmer look to work a short-corner routine, but the trick fails to come off and forces Caicedo to dribble the ball all the way back into his own half to avoid the intense Manchester City press.

A first real attack for Chelsea sees Gusto receive James’ leading pass before whipping an inviting delivery to the far post that’s turned behind by the head of a diving Nunes for a corner-kick.

CLOSE! Semenyo cuts inside from the right ahead of Cucurella, riding two or three challenges before scuffing a tame shot towards goal. The effort takes a touch on its way through though and falls kindly to Marmoush, who sends an awkward volley straight into the arms of a grateful Sanchez.

Manchester City have unsurprisingly settled into a passing rhythm rather quickly, moving forward cautiously before turning back around to draw Chelsea out of their low block. Silva and Rodri will be key in the build up, with Cucurella and Hato combining to take as much space away from Semenyo as possible.

Chelsea get the match under way from the kick-off!

Chelsea’s defence will still be fully aware of the danger Haaland brings despite the unusual statistic surrounding his performances in major finals. Manchester City supporters will hope their star striker can deliver in the decisive moments as Pep Guardiola’s side aim to lift another FA Cup trophy.

Chelsea have won the prestigious competition 8 times, their most recent triumph coming in 2018 with a 1-0 victory over Manchester United in the final. The Blues currently are joint-third in the list of most successful teams in FA Cup history alongside Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, behind Arsenal (14) and Man United (13).

Manchester City, meanwhile, are level on seven titles with Aston Villa at the fourth spot, their most recent triumph coming in the 2023 edition in which they defeated United 2-1. City had also reached the final of the next two editions, losing to cross-town rivals United and Crystal Palace in the final.

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Pep Guardiola rotated his squad heavily during Manchester City’s recent Premier League clash against Crystal Palace, with Erling Haaland left out of the squad. The Norwegian striker is expected to return straight to the starting lineup for the FA Cup final against Chelsea at Wembley Stadium. Haaland will lead City’s attack as they chase another major domestic trophy under Guardiola. Despite his incredible scoring record, Haaland heads into the final carrying a surprising statistic in big knockout matches.

Chelsea take on Manchester City in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium as the Blues chase major silverware against Pep Guardiola’s side. 🏆🔥

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