Manchester United vs Manchester City – FA Cup Final: Live score, team news and updates as Erik ten Hag’s XI is ‘leaked’ and he claims he won’t be sacked
The calm before the storm…
Well, I say that, but it has been pretty stormy already for United…
Wembley is calm, though, for now.
Soon enough, fans will be flooding through the turnstiles as kick-off starts to edge closer.
I’m intrigued to see what the atmosphere is like.
United’s road to Wembley
Now, let’s look at Manchester United’s road to the final:
Third round: Wigan Athletic 0-2 Manchester United Fourth round: Newport County 2-4 Manchester UnitedFifth Round: Nottingham Forest 0-1 Manchester UnitedQuarter-final: Manchester United 4-3 Liverpool – AETSemi-final: Coventry City 3-3P Manchester United
AET: After extra-time
P: Won 4-2 on penalties
City’s route to the final
Right, let’s have a look at how Manchester City got here then:
Third round: Manchester City 5-0 Huddersfield TownFourth round: Tottenham 0-1 Manchester City Fifth Round: Luton Town 2-6 Manchester CityQuarter-final: Manchester City 2-0 Newcastle UnitedSemi-final: Manchester City 1-0 Chelsea
United legends at Wembley
Oh, how Manchester United could do with the man on the right today.
And the man on the left too, Wes Brown.
Both Brown and Rooney have arrived at Wembley to support their former side against its bitter rivals.
If United had their all-time top scorer up top today in his prime, they’d have every chance of getting the job done.
Even now, he’d probably do a job.
Fan opinions on team leaks…
Anonymous: Leaked or not it’ll make no difference we could play them all at the same time versus any 11 City pick and we’d lose on attitude alone. Sack them all.
It doesn’t seem that Man United fans are confident…
Fans fume rumbles on
The more I read about the supposed leak of Manchester United’s team today, the more discontent I see in the fan base.
Here are two examples of how the majority of the supporters are feeling… and it’s not happy.
With all of this swirling around the side today, it’s hard to see how they can focus on just the game itself.
It feels like it’s already advantage, Manchester City.
Would you ever buy a half-and-half scarf?
Look, I completely understand why half-and-half scarves are a thing.
For people who rarely get to see their side play, it can be bought as a thing to represent a memorable day for them.
However, for a derby like this one, I’m not so sure…
I’d be shocked if many United or City fans bought these today, maybe it is for the neutrals?
If you were heading to a derby match or FA Cup final, would you buy one?
More fan anger on leaks…
Anonymous: Leaked by players. Just goes to show their unprofessionalism. Shouldn’t be in PL let alone Man Utd. Grow up and have some respect.
The anger towards the leaks just keeps on coming, this time from the comments section…
Let us know what you think about all the leaks in the comments.
Fans rolling in
With all the drama that has unfolded today, it’s easy to forget that we have a final coming up in under three hours.
The fans of both Manchester sides are already making their way up Wembley Way, or ‘Mancunian Way’ as one fan puts it.
This is when the nerves start to kick in, as you approach the ground.
You just can’t beat it, though, seeing your team in a cup final.
United seeking Europe…
It has simply been a season to forget for Manchester United.
The Red Devils finished in eighth place in the league, which is the lowest they have ever finished in the Premier League era.
What it means is that they are currently set to miss out on Europe. The last time they did not feature in European competition was in 2014-15.
Their European hopes are not over just yet, if they win today they will secure a spot in the Europa League alongside Tottenham.
That would mean Chelsea drop into the Europa Conference League while seventh-placed Newcastle would miss out on Europe altogether.
So, I’m sure Newcastle and Chelsea fans will be cheering on Manchester City today.
Pep Guardiola: ‘Maybe it will be extra motivation for players’
Pep Guardiola, Manchester City, speaking on Friday:
We can do back-to-back doubles, we have a chance to do this. It is football, it’s never happened before in our history (repeat derby finals), two times in a row.We respect Manchester United. In the last decade we have been better but in terms of history you have to of course respect them massively.If history gives us a chance to do something not done before, try it. Maybe it will be extra motivation for players. No teams have done four in a row, none have done back-to-back doubles. That is because it is not easy.
City chasing history
Right, I think it’s about time we looked at Manchester City.
Pep Guardiola’s team seems to be creating history every week, and they can do it again today.
Just six days ago they took home the Premier League trophy for the fourth time in a row, a record.
Well, now they could complete the League and FA Cup for the third time, only matched by Manchester United and Arsenal.
In addition, if they achieve the double today they will be the first side in English football history to do it in consecutive seasons.
Pep always wants motivation, well, here it is.
United line-up leak angers fans
It has been a torrid day already for Manchester United fans.
You could probably rewrite that first sentence and change ‘day’ for ‘season’, too.
Anyway, some of the United faithful have taken to X (formerly Twitter) to express their anger at a supposed FA Cup final line-up leak.
We haven’t seen the supposed leak, however, the way the last 24 hours have gone for them, it seems about right.
The whole atmosphere in that end could be a weird one today.
We’ve been here before
Am I the only person getting de ja vu, surely not?
Prior to last year, Manchester City and United had never met in an FA Cup final. Well, now they have two years running.
On June 3, 2023, both City and United arose from the tunnel at Wembley ready to do battle in the glorious sunshine.
Pep Guardiola’s side then proceeded to knock the optimism out of United after just 13 seconds when Ilkay Gundogan walloped a volley home.
Bruno Fernandes did respond for United before Gundogan grabbed his second just six minutes after the break, and that was all she wrote.
City ticked off their second trophy on their way to a historic treble, while I only went downhill for United from there.
POLL: Is this the end of the line for Erik ten Hag?
Right, before we get on to the actual game, I thought I’d run a poll.
As I said in the post, I’m pretty sure the results will go a certain way, but let’s see…
Will this be Erik ten Hag’s final match as Manchester United manager?
Eerily reminiscent of Van Gaal…
It feels like we have been here before…
A Dutch manager in his second season who is potentially set for the sack after the FA Cup final, no matter what happens, due to a poor Premier League season.
It sounds similar, right?
That’s because we have been in this exact situation before, eight years ago, with Louis van Gaal.
The former United boss was sacked directly after the 2015-16 FA Cup final, despite the team beating Crystal Palace to secure the trophy.
I guess, if you believe in omens, then that means United have a chance…
Erik ten Hag comes out swinging in sensational FA Cup final day interview
I honestly couldn’t believe what I was reading when this came out.
If Erik ten Hag is set to leave, which it seems like he is, then he is not leaving without everyone hearing what he has to say.
He certainly didn’t mince his words about managing a club as big as Manchester United…
You simply must read this, it’s pretty telling.
To do so, click below:
Ten Hag slams Man United fans for having ‘no sense of reality’
Erik ten Hag’s last hurrah?
We have to start here, don’t we?
What a mad 24 hours it has been for Manchester United…
Firstly, reports emerged yesterday that United are set to sack Erik ten Hag upon completion of today’s FA Cup final, even if they win.
Then, in a wild turn of events, Dutch media outlet, VI, released an interview they held with Ten Hag, and my word, he did not hold back.
Surely, all of the noise over the past day has to have affected the players, and the manager himself.
If this is the end, its matches up perfectly with how the season has gone for United. Appallingly.
So, is it the end?
Wembley awaits…
The time has come, it’s FA Cup final day.
The sun is shining brightly on the London sky, and as it always does, the Wembley turf is looking immaculate.
Games don’t get much bigger than this, and to add fuel to the fire, it’s a derby… the Manchester Derby.
It was only just under a year ago that this exact final took place for the very first time, and Manchester City came out on top on that occasion.
Can they do so again to claim a domestic double, or will Manchester United surprise everybody on potential Erik ten Hag’s last game as manager?
We will find out in just a few hours…
Let’s get cracking then, shall we?
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