Bernardo Silva scored late in the 84th minute as Manchester City defeated Chelsea to book a place in the final of the 2024 FA Cup.
It was a tight affair at Wembley as the Premier League champions locked horns with the Blues for a slot in the final of the oldest football competition in England.
Fresh from a disappointing Champions League quarterfinal loss to Real Madrid at Etihad, Pep Guardiola needed to prove a point, returning the team to winning ways.
Meanwhile, Chelsea had romped to a thumping 6-0 victory over Everton in their last match and had the cause to brim with confidence going into the match.
The past two meetings between both sides in the league have ended in a draw with 10 goals scored. Away from the rain of goals that streamlined their last engagements, it was a near-barren run at Wembley.
Manchester City proved more dominant with a lengthy spell of possession but lacked a clinical attacking edge to finish things off. Norwegian attacking sensation Erling Haaland was benched in the game, and his absence in City’s attacking lineup was far too glaring to be ignored.
Meanwhile, Chelsea seemed more threatening on the attack than their opponents. They had 10 attempts with 5 on target while Manchester City had 14 attempts with only 3 on target.
The first half ended barren as the Blues made well their effort to torpedo advances by their opponents. The second half nearly ended in a similar fashion with both sides unable to find the back of the net.
The best chances of the game obviously went to Chelsea with Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson missing two big opportunities. In the 84th minute, City finally broke the deadlock after Kevin De Bruyne’s low shot was blocked by Chelsea goalkeeper Petrovic.
The rebound fell on a platter for unmarked Bernardo Silva who tucked it into the back of the net to hand City the winner. Chelsea made a late push for an equaliser all to no avail as City held on to grab a 1-0 victory and book a place in the final of the competition.
They will play the winner between Manchester United and Coventry City in the other semifinal match which comes up on Sunday, April 21.
