After overcoming Nottingham Forest to win the FA Cup with a 2-0 advantage on Sunday at Wembley, Manchester City will face Crystal Palace in their third successive finale.
Rico Lewis gave Pep Guardiola’s side an early lead before Josko Gvardiol’s second-half goal made it 2-0.
After the Eagles defeated Aston Villa 3-0 in the other semi-final on Saturday, City can anticipate a showdown with Palace at Wembley on May 17.
City have a chance to win the FA Cup for the eighth time since Guardiola took over the title in their 14th appearance since Guardiola took over the reins in 2016.
After defeating cross-town rivals in the 2023 showpiece, City lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup final last year.
Guardiola hopes to win the FA Cup and earn a place in the Champions League by placing in the top five in the Premier League, salvaging a turbulent season.
City will advance to the final as favorites after beating Palace 5-2 earlier in April at the Etihad Stadium. They are currently fourth in the league with four games left.
However, Guardiola will need no recollection of that season’s success after their four-year reign as English champions was officially ended by Liverpool’s victory against Tottenham at Wembley just as the final whistle blew.
With a game in hand, Forest must lick their wounds and concentrate on their quest to become the first team to reach the Champions League since 1980-81, just two points behind third-placed Newcastle.
It was Forest’s second appearance at Wembley since it reopened in 2007, making City’s 28th appearance there.
As kick-off approached, there was no surprise that the Forest hordes who traveled there were much more vocal, and that large swathes of empty seats were prominent in the City sections.
However, as City’s fans stormed into the lead in the second minute, they quickly made themselves heard.
Slick City –
Guardiola claimed this week that City will be much stronger next season because they have since rediscovered their spirit and drive.
In a crucial 2-1 win over Villa on Wednesday, the City manager was encouraged by his team’s wild celebrations of Bernardo Silva’s opening goal.
Lewis took advantage of the far too much space on the edge of the Forest area with a fierce drive into the bottom corner after a questioning period of City passing.
Forest was too busy for Forest to handle City’s pressing, so Nico O’Reilly waltzed through Forest’s defense to deliver a fizzed blast just wide.
Nuno Espirito Santo, Forest manager, gambled on Zach Abbott at right-back while Neco Williams was suspended and Ola Aina and Ryan Yates were injured, and Anthony Elanga was unsurprisingly sat on the bench.
Abbott, who had only played 60 minutes this season, was repeatedly exposed by City’s attacks and Forest, who was lacking in a cutting edge without Elanga, who was the backbone of Nuno’s moves for the majority of the first half.
In the City area, Forest only had one touch after the first half when he couldn’t pull off a single shot.
Elanga should have celebrated his 23rd birthday with a goal when Nuno sent him on from Callum Hudson-Odoi’s pass.
However, in the 51st minute, City displayed the same ruthless resolve as Forest did.
Gvardiol rose highest to head home after Matz Sels pushed his effort away for a corner and Omar Marmoush’s set-piece left him essentially unchallenged.
Morgan Gibbs-White of Forest slammed another effort off the post after Morgan Gibbs-White crashed a volley off the crossbar.
With a back-heeled movie, Taiwo Awoniyi also made a Woody Woods debut for Forest.
Source: Channels TV
Leave a Reply