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Pep Guardiola's Manchester City go head to head with Erik ten Hag's Manchester United in a mouthwatering FA Cup final at Wembley on Saturday. Check out our key stats, verdict and suggested bets for the clash.
Key stats
Erling Halaand’s impressive tally of 52 goals this season could be complemented by another record here. He could become the first Norwegian to score in an FA Cup final.
Manchester City have yet to concede a goal in this season’s FA Cup. If they win it without conceding, they’ll be only the third side to do so. This was last achieved by Bury in 1903.
Despite their glorious history, Manchester United have never won the FA Cup and the League Cup in the same season.
Manchester United have won five of their last six FA Cup ties with City, although the sides last met in 2012.
Manchester City vs Manchester Utd verdict
Despite their history of winning trophies and Manchester City’s recent dominance of English football, this will be the first time the clubs have met in a major final.
City have been the standout side in the competition this year, coming into this game as the top scorer with 17 goals and a perfect defensive record.
United had to ride their luck and grind out a 0-0 draw against Brighton before getting the job done on penalties to book their place in a 21st FA Cup final.
It may also come as a surprise to know that only four teams have completed an FA Cup and League Cup double and the Red Devils aren’t one of them.
Pep Guardiola sacrificed his side's unbeaten run in all competitions to rest players against Brentford on the final day. Before that, they were unbeaten in 25 matches.
Such unbeaten runs are a thing of the past for United but they have improved under Erik ten Hag. His side finished the season with four straight victories.
Manchester City recorded a comfortable league double over their rivals last season and thumped them 6-3 in the first meeting of the 2022/23 season, but lost 2-1 at Old Trafford.
Ten Hag’s side lacks the leaders to earn big results on their travels and go to the next level, but getting City away from the Etihad gives them more of a chance.
Despite that, we have to conclude that Guardiola’s side are experts at navigating Cup finals and not only do they have better leadership at the back, they also have greater quality in the middle of the park.
The biggest factor could be the man standing on the sidelines. Guardiola has a fantastic record in cup finals. He has won all five domestic finals he has guided City to and hasn’t lost a domestic cup final at any club since 2011.
One trend that caught our eye was when each team tends to score and concede. Man City’s goals are evenly distributed between halves, but they fare best on either side of half-time.
United tend to keep things tight early, scoring and allowing a combined 12 goals in the opening 15 minutes of matches.
It’s not easy to pick out a worthwhile price to bet on, so we’re getting creative. Back the second half to be the highest scoring and the first goal of the game to come after the 30-minute mark.
Suggested bets
Manchester City 2-1 Manchester United
Man City to score in both halves
First goal scored after 30 minutes
Highest scoring half: Second
