Can United Stop City from Reaching Another Milestone as Manchester Gets Divided?

For the second time in two years, Manchester United will be confronting Manchester City in the final of the English FA Cup as the two sides battle for honours today in the world’s oldest football cup competition. Just last weekend, the Citizens became the first club in England to win four straight Premier League titles and a win for the ‘noisy neighbours’ today would mean another milestone in English football as the Pep Guardiola’s men would become the first side to win both the league and FA Cup for two consecutive seasons. Though the Red Devils have not been up to speed in recent times, but Ten Hag’s side would draw motivation from booking a Europa League ticket and also preventing their blue side rival from setting another record     

Reuniting under the famous arch of Wembley Stadium for a repeat of last year’s Manchester derby showpiece, bitter rivals Manchester City and Manchester United do battle in the 143rd FA Cup final this afternoon.

While the Citizens are vying to retain England’s oldest trophy and hoist it aloft for the eighth time in their history, the Red Devils are out for revenge and are seeking to get their hands on the prestigious prize for a 13th time.

This time last year, Man City were marching towards a historic treble, with both the club and individual stars breaking a plethora of records along the way. Although their aspirations of retaining the Champions League came to an emotionally exhausting end earlier this season, losing on penalties to Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, they remain on course to etch their name into the history books on the domestic front for the second time in the space of just six days.

Despite the best efforts of challengers Arsenal who pushed them right to the final day, Man City have been crowned Premier League champions once again after beating West Ham United 3-1 in front of a carnival atmosphere at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, becoming the first team in English top-flight history to win four titles in a row.

Man City’s relentless drive to succeed season after season has been instilled by manager Pep Guardiola, who continues to cement his status as one of, if not the, best coaches the beautiful game has ever produced having now won six Premier League titles and 17 trophies in total during his eight years at the helm.

Guardiola, who has been rewarded with the Premier League Manager of the Season accolade, has admitted that he is now running out of things to achieve at Man City. With his contract set to expire in 2025, the Catalan has stated that he is “closer to leaving than staying”, hinting that next season could be his last at the Etihad.

The 53-year-old was, however, reliably informed by Gary Lineker last weekend that he can create further history with Man City in today’s Wembley showpiece, as no team in English football has ever won the top-flight title and FA Cup in consecutive seasons. The Citizens could complete the league title and FA Cup double for the third time, something that has only been achieved previously by Man United (1993-94, 1995-96 and 1998-99) and Arsenal (1970-71, 1997-98 and 2001-02).

Arsenal were in fact the last team to win back-to-back FA Cups (2014 and 2015) and have won a record 14 trophies in total, with Man United second on the all-time list with 12, while Man City can move into joint-third with eight triumphs along with Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur if they can come out on top this weekend.

Since losing 3-2 to Liverpool in the semi-finals of the 2022 FA Cup, Man City have won each of their last 11 games in the competition, scoring 34 goals and conceding only five times.

Man City, who boast a club-record 35-game unbeaten run in all competitions dating back to December 6, have every right to be optimistic of success against a Man United outfit whom they have already beaten twice in the Premier League this season (3-0 at Old Trafford and 3-1 at the Etihad). The last time they beat their rivals three times in the same campaign was back in 1969-70.

Although the Citizens are regarded as firm favourites to win today’s final, Man United can never be written off entirely in a Manchester derby and there is arguably more riding on this fixture for the Red Devils and particularly manager Erik ten Hag, who has come under mounting pressure to keep his job following an underwhelming 2023-24 campaign.

Man United enter their 22nd FA Cup final, the most by any team in the competition’s history, knowing they must beat Man City to qualify for next season’s Europa Conference League after their lowest-ever Premier League finish (eighth place) was confirmed last weekend, despite beating Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion in their final two games of the campaign.

Ten Hag has continuously highlighted the fact that his Man United side have been hampered with injuries and illness throughout this season, but that serves as no excuse for a number of below-par performances across all competitions. In the Premier League, the Red Devils have been condemned to a club-record 14 defeats and end the season with a -1 goal difference for the first time in 34 years. They also mustered their second-lowest points total (60) in a 38-game campaign.

The only competition that has brought an element of joy to Red Devils supporters this term is the FA Cup.

Ten Hag has vowed to ‘fight for the FA Cup’ and end their gruelling season that has ‘not been good enough’ on a much-needed high, but securing silverware at the expense of Man City might not be enough to save his job ahead of an expected summer overhaul by minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Man United enter today’s contest having lost six of their last seven meetings with Man City in all competitions, conceding 21 goals in the process, and they have lost each of their last three in a row. However, the Red Devils have come out on top in five of their last seven FA Cup encounters with their noisy neighbours, although both defeats during this run were at Wembley, including last season’s final when a brace from Ilkay Gundogan – including a 12-second opener condemned Ten Hag’s men to a 2-1 defeat.