Recently crowned four-times champions of England Man City take on the biggest club in the world and rivals, Man Utd.
For the first time ever, we will have back-to-back Manchester Derby FA Cup finals which really could be a do or die for MUFC boss Erik ten Hag. Rumors are circling that depending on the result, this could be the Dutchman’s last game at the helm. Some would say that even if he does beat his former mentor Pep Guardiola, ten Hag will still be shown the door.
Whatever the case is, this could be a significant game in the future of Erik ten Hag and Man Utd.
So, can United do one over their neighbours and current FA Cup holders?
Predicted Lineup
Erik ten Hag has stated that he expects as strong a squad as possible available for this derby.
There is still no Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire but everyone else is ready. I think it will be one of our strongest squads available for the entire season. Better late than never I suppose 🤷♂️.
It also gives me great pleasure to announce the returns of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane at the back. One last time. How we’ve missed them?
This means Casemiro back to his normal CDM position which he hasn’t played in for a while and partners up with young Kobbie Mainoo.
I’ve also stuck with Amad on the right as I don’t think Marcus Rashford is 100% fit. If he is, there is a good chance he’ll start simply because he is one of the manager’s favourites. This would be unfair on Amad as he has been brilliant since coming into the side and deserves to keep his spot.
But I’m going to stick with the false 9. Scott Mctominay stays as the striker for this one, at least from the start.
At least we’ll now have a bench as we’ve been struggling with options off it all campaign.
United Approach
It would be interesting if he does go with the false 9 approach. After his comments post the Brighton win, I feel that we could be seeing this tactic once more or at least we shouldn’t be surprised if we did.
We know that we are most likely not going to have a lot of the ball as City dominate possession.
What United have to do is be calm when we do have the ball and use it wisely. That is easier said than done though because our players panic unnecessarily and City do press really well.
It’s highly likely that United will play a conservative game so we have to be organized at the back. We also have to keep our focus, something that we’ve found so difficult this season and has led to several mistakes.
When looking at games between City and Arsenal, the Gunners kept it relatively tight at the back not allowing City much space to move and play into. They only had 12 shots and 1 on target against Arteta’s side in the 0–0 draw at the Etihad.
Even against Real Madrid in the first leg of their QF tie, 12 shots was all they mustered with their 3 goals being some of the best this season.
In these two matches, City didn’t create too many clear-cut openings as in Madrid, they were restricted to scoring the spectacular, which is a possibility but less likely to result in a goal than something more clear-cut.
This is why we have to be so on it when it comes to defending. We cannot allow them any space and time as they will punish us. Tracking of runners needs to happen too and is something else we don’t do too well. City are very good at making darts into the box particularly Rodri.
The midfield is the key area of this game. The Sky Blues are so strong everywhere but if we stop the likes of Rodri and KDB, we’ve a good chance as then it means we only have to stop Haaland, Foden, Bernardo Silva, Gvardiol, Walker, Stones, Grealish.
So not too bad then 😅.
The energy and concentration required for this game is key as we weren’t switched on from the start in last season’s final as Ilkay Gundogan scored a volley in the 12th second of the match which was the fastest goal in FA Cup final history.
Yeah, we can’t let that happen again.
As for up front, as we’ve seen in United’s last two league matches, the manager has used a false 9 approach, to everyone’s surprise.
Erik ten Hag has stated his desire to give some rest to striker Rasmus Hojlund and due to not having any viable replacements, has had to get a little radical with his tactics, hence the false 9.
It’s not something we haven’t seen from him before as he did use it the last time we faced City. In the 3–1 defeat at the Emptihad, it was Marcus Rashford who was tasked with the number 9 role.
In these past two games though, it has been between Scott McTominay and Bruno Fernandes who’ve interchanged up front.
Erik ten Hag feels that it was a tactic that worked in that league match and has sort of worked in the last two as well when looking at how we’ve played as well as Hojlund’s impact off the bench.
Could ten Hag use it again? Don’t be surprised.
This approach can also lead to United being a bit more compact in midfield as both Bruno and McTominay are midfielders by trade. It could lead to MUFC being tighter making it harder for City to play through us.
When we do create chances, we must be clinical something that ten Hag’s team has managed to do somewhat well against Newcastle and Brighton.
With 12 shots on target, we’ve scored 5 goals which is a return of 42%. Not bad at all. Rasmus Hojlund got 2 of those, both from the bench, which is why I feel there’s even more of a chance that that is where he will start.
United through the FA Cup
The Red Devils have had quite the run-in especially the last two rounds.
The first three of the competition weren’t anything special as United did get some pretty straightforward wins over the likes of Wigan, Newport County and Nottingham Forest but the action started to happen once Liverpool came to town.
In what is arguably the game of the tournament and perhaps season (so far), a 7-goal thriller ended with a last-minute extra time winner by Amad resulting in absolute scenes at Old Trafford.
The young Ivorian was so caught up in the emotions that he celebrated by taking his shirt off which led to his second booking and subsequent red card.
He had forgotten that he was already on a yellow 😂. What a moment!
And if that game wasn’t dramatic enough, the semifinal…
Against lower-league opposition in Coventry City, we all thought that this would be a walk in the park, even for this crap United side.
After being 3–0 up in an hour, that proved to be right.
But what did we know?
In an incredible end to the game, Coventry fought back by rising from the dead to level the game at 3–3 in half-an-hour. A late penalty by Haji Wright sent the Coventry players and fans into raptures.
Extra time followed and thanks to VAR, Man Utd and Erik ten Hag were saved by the skin of their teeth as in the buildup to their 4th goal, Wright was deemed offside by the thinnest of margins.
I don’t think I had ever gone from dead to alive so fast in my life.
However, we still had penalties to go through but it felt as though we got out of jail.
In the end, MUFC scraped past a superb effort by Coventry as we won 4–2 in the shootout to the relief of all, not least Erik ten Hag.
But those two games perfectly sum up United this season:
When we want to, we can fight back and do the unthinkable but at other times, we can be brilliant for most of the game but somehow allow a 3-goal lead to slip against a weaker opponent with 30 minutes to go in a semifinal.
It’s never easy with this team.
However, the last two results in the league will give United a confidence boost as beating both Newcastle and Brighton is no easy feat.
Man City
We know what these guys are all about. They’re pretty good (unfortunately).
City are the best in the league as they’ve just won their fourth PL in a row and became the first team in history to do so. They are also the current holders of this competition after defeating United in the final last year in what was the first-ever Manchester Derby FA Cup final.
Pep and co will no doubt still be high off their PL title triumph and for MUFC’s sake, let’s hope that they’re actually high for this game 😜.
That obviously won’t be the case as these guys are as professional as they come which is one of the reasons why they have been so successful over the past decade.
City have an array of quality both in their starting lineup and on their bench. The ability to field two first teams is something only known to them so even if some of the heavy hitters are missing, someone else will easily slot in.
All the players are also well drilled in Guardiola’s style of play and demands from him on and off the pitch.
The blue half of Manchester are so good in all aspects of the game. Possession is their way of play but they are superb when it comes to movement on and off the ball, they pass and move the ball so quickly, they don’t give the ball away stupidly, they are very calm in possession, there is no panic.
Their defence is pretty solid, they can score from set-pieces, and on the counter, they will punish most.
They have a great mix in terms of different types of players too.
The traditional big, strong centre-backs in defence but with the modern twist of being good on the ball and being relatively quick allowing City to play a high line (which is definitely an area for United to exploit).
Speaking of speed, his name maybe Walker but he ain’t no stroller. The right-back is one of the quickest players in the league with that recovery pace getting him out of trouble on plenty of occasions. And in the other full-back position is the in-form Josko Gvardiol who is actually a centre-back turned left-back, another one of Pep’s transformative players.
Rodri in midfield is tall, strong, good in the air, shield the back line, but can definitely play ball. He also has the ability to popup with some important goals.
They then have the technicality of Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden, players who appear to have the ball glued to their feet at times and can carve you open like there's no tomorrow. Foden in particular likes to play against United as he has 3 goals from the two matches in the league while scoring a hat-trick in the 6–3 thumping of United at the Etihad last season.
How could I forget KDB, City’s version of Bruno Fernandes. That should tell you everything about that player.
And then of course, the striking Viking.
Erling Haaland is more of a traditional centre-forward in that he’s quite tall, strong, good in the air and great at the hold up and link up play but his speed could challenge most quicks in the league. For a big guy, he can seriously shift.
Much like Foden, he too has a great record against United. He scored the other 3 goals in the two league meetings as well as the other hat-trick in that 6–3 game.
Although, he doesn’t have the best of records in finals as he didn’t score or play that well in both of last season’s FA Cup and Champions League finals.
👆 perhaps
And like I said, if they aren’t enough, they have another first team.
The odds really are against us.
They are in great form from the league as they’ve won every game for the past 7 years. Or so it seems.
They’ve only not won the two games against Real Madrid in their last 12.
As for their route to the FA Cup final, they have some tough opponents. They also had some not so tough ones as well.
They began with a 5–0 hammering of Huddersfield at home before a narrow 0–1 win at Spurs. That was followed by another thumping with Luton being on the end of a 2–6 hiding to Pep’s team.
And then came quite a controversial game against Chelsea. City did come out 1–0 winners but not without drama.
A clear as day handball on Jack Grealish wasn’t given after old boy Cole Palmer struck a free-kick that hit the City man’s flayling arm in the box.
No penalty.
Chelsea did have their fair share of other opportunities to kill the game but that penalty probably would’ve changed things in their favor especially because it came before City’s goal.
The two Manchester sides not doing it the traditional ways in terms of getting through the semis.
Pep Guardiola also says that City are free of injuries other than Ederson.
Recent Meetings
City have dominated this fixture in recent years as they’ve won seven of the last nine derbies in all competitions.
The last two cup competition meetings was in the League Cup in 2021 which they won 2–0 and last season’s FA Cup final.
It ain’t looking good bruv 😬.
Prediction
I’m actually going to go for a similar result to last season’s final. City are the heavy favorites but I can’t see it being such a walk in the park for them this time round compared to last year.
Nonetheless, I do believe Pep’s team will have too much quality for United in the end.
I was feeling confident a couple of days ago, but after all this manager talk, that confidence is slowly fading away.
I’m hoping that United can prove me wrong but at the moment, I can only see one team winning.
2–1 or 2–0 to City.