They do say that all-Manchester FA Cup finals come around like London buses.
After having to wait 140 years for the first, the second will arrive less than 365 days later. Manchester City and Manchester United will meet again at Wembley on Saturday afternoon.
City’s success in last season’s final was the second step on their way to a historic treble. Ilkay Gundogan’s opener inside 13 seconds set the tone for what was a bleak day for Erik ten Hag’s Red Devils.
Ten Hag’s men once again enter the final against their ‘noisy neighbours’ as the underdog having finished 31 points behind the champions in the Premier League. United’s Dutch manager may well be overseeing his final game in charge of the club on Saturday, and a shrewd coaching performance is required for the 12-time winners to bridge the considerable gap.
Moreover, United must prevail in several key battles to have any chance of lifting the trophy. Here are three that could define Saturday’s FA Cup final.
United have been far from brilliant with Bruno Fernandes in the side this season, but they were ghastly without him in May. Fernandes missed the first two games of his club career through injury as Ten Hag’s side endured a 4-0 battering at Crystal Palace before failing to lay a glove on Arsenal at Old Trafford.
Fernandes may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but he’s United’s talisman, and he’ll be pivotal to any success the Red Devils have on Saturday.
The Portuguese star will have plenty of freedom to roam from a #10 position at Wembley, with City’s superstar holding midfielder, Rodri, likely to see plenty of Fernandes. However, the Spaniard won’t follow United’s skipper when he drifts into wide areas. Rodri’s focus will be taming Fernandes in central positions, limiting his creative influence and preventing him from igniting transitions from deeper zones.
United are rarely successful when Fernandes is quiet, but City can also go off-kilter when Rodri’s rhythm is disrupted. Ten Hag will want his captain to be an absolute pest without the ball on Saturday and never allow Rodri to settle.
Haaland didn’t quite reach the astronomic heights of 2022/23, yet he waltzed to another Premier League Golden Boot. He turned it on at crucial points down the stretch.
Haaland has had plenty of success against United…
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