The Citizens and the Red Devils play in the FA Cup finals, which takes place at the Wembley Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Citizens have already won the English Premier League and have solid prospects of winning the famous Treble, as they also play in the UEFA Champions League. As for Manchester United, we haven’t seen the desired progress under the new manager, Erik Ten Hag. United won the EFL Cup, but that isn’t important as the FA title, and only if the team manages to lift the trophy the Red Devils fans will be satisfied.
Preview
Manchester City
Guardiola and his machine have been savage since the New Year. It’s no wonder they melted Arsenal’s advantage in the Premier League standings. Even with eight points more than the Citizens, everyone knew that the unit from Etihad would win the title.
A bingo for Guardiola was the decision to change the type of attacker at the start of the year, adding Erling Haaland, who already broke numerous records. City netted two or more goals since the year began in more than 80% of games.
How @ManCity reached the 2022-23 #EmiratesFACup Final ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/AIS5pxVeWF
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) May 31, 2023
By the way, their last loss to Brentford on the road was the first one following 25 consecutive contests across the competition. That’s another proof that this team plays in perfect form. There isn’t an influence of the venue or something like that because the Citizens post excellent results both at home and on the road.
Manchester United
Erik Ten Hag gave up on Ronaldo at the start of the year, and many didn’t like that decision. In the end, it really turned out as a bad judgment. Even with all the hype around Rashford, it is evident that he isn’t at the same level as Cristiano. Anyhow, United won the EFL Cup, but in other competitions, they could have been more successful.
Fourth place in the Premier League secured them the UCL appearance in the future edition. But United’s oscillations did leave a bad taste in their fans.
Especially problematic were the games away from Old Trafford. The Red Devils won three of the latest ten outings, which is not a decent record for a team of their caliber. Their attack has been poor, frequently not hitting the back of the rival’s net.
Head to Head
Each team has a win in direct meetings in the previous EPL campaign. The first meeting was at the Etihad Stadium, and back then, Man City was fantastic, ripping apart the rivals 6-3. The hosts were quite confident, and they could win even more convincingly.
The second clash saw United’s revenge, as the Red Devils won 2-1. It was a setback for the Citizens in the title race, but eventually, it turned out not to be that important.
Prediction
United performs poorly away from Manchester, and that’s the first reason we doubt their chances in this FA Cup finals. On the other side is the unit with the best form not only in England but also on European soil. Also, United has several players who are absent and several who aren’t that fit. Lisandro Martinez isn’t available, which would make more space and opportunity for Haaland.
The bottom line is that United can’t compete with Man City. Guardiola and his boys are our primary pick here. For those who want to take on the risk, go with Man City covering a one-and-a-half goal spread.
Pick: Manchester City 1/2 at BetXchange
