Manchester City have closed in on a historic treble after defeating Manchester United at Wembley to clinch their 7th FA Cup trophy.
Manchester City went into the game with full strength. Some of the key players that missed the last Premier League clash against Brentford were back to the squad.
Jack Grealish and Kevin De Bruyne started the game with second choice goalkeeper Stefan Ortega on goal.
Manchester City: Stefan Ortega; Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Manuel Akanji; John Stones, Rodri; Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, Jack Grealish; Erling Haaland.
Erik Ten Hag made four changes to the team that defeated Fulham in the last Premier League game.
Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw, Christian Eriksen, and Wan-Bissaka started for the Red Devils, while Anthony Martial and Antony were ruled out of the game.
Manchester United: David de Gea; Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw; Christian Eriksen, Casemiro, Fred; Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho.
It was the first Manchester Derby FA Cup Final in the history of the competition but the two sides have met six times in the competition with Manchester United winning five times while City won one.
The two sides have clashed twice at Wembley in FA Cup and have shared a win apiece.
It was a dreaded start for Manchester United. Just in the first minute of play, Manchester City took the lead with IIkay Gundogan’s wonder strike.
De Bruyne sent a long ball into the Manchester United half. The Red Devils failed to clear it as the ball bounced on the path of IIkay Gundogan who wasted no time firing a right-footed volley beyond David de Gea into the top right corner.
Gundogan’s strike was one of the fastest FA Cup goal and a nightmare start for Manchester United’s hopes of a double.
Manchester City continued to dominate the game after taking the lead with Manchester United largely defending while City wielded possession.
In the 31st minute, Jack Grealish handled the ball in Manchester City’s box and United were awarded a spotkick.
Bruno Fernandes stepped up and stroke a low shot into the bottom-left corner, sending Ortega the wrong way.
Manchester United found the equaliser from nowhere after playing second fiddle to City throughout the first half.
In the second half, City maintained their dominance in the game, pressing hard to return to the lead.
In the 51st minute, IIkay Gundogan volleyed home De Bruyne’s freekick to put City in front again.
Gundogan was left unmarked as he latched onto the ball and slot it pass de Gea. The Blue side of Manchester were back in front and were still dominating play.
After bagging his brace, Gundogan nearly bag an FA Cup hat-trick after he stroke in his third goal but the offside flag was up.
It was another masterclass performance by Manchester City against Manchester United. The Red Devils offered no real threat upfront despite trailing 2-1.
Erik Ten Hag took off Christian Eriksen for Alejandro Garnacho, who ignited the spark in Man United attack but they still struggled against City’s dominant display.
The match ended with Manchester City grabbing a 2-1 win to clinch their 7th FA Cup trophy. They have now close in on a historic treble with the Champions League final seven days away.
