Chelsea vs Manchester City Review
Antoine Semenyo’s moment of brilliance secured a 1-0 victory for Manchester City over Chelsea in the FA Cup final, marking City’s first trophy win since 2023, despite reaching the other two finals since then. Pep Guardiola’s team dominated possession early on and began creating chances, with Semenyo having two shots blocked and Omar Marmoush making a weak touch after the first attempt. Rodri then attempted a header that João Pedro blocked, but City couldn’t challenge Robert Sánchez despite maintaining good ball movement.
At the other end, João Pedro had a chance but was well defended by Abdukodir Khusanov and slipped while shooting, allowing James Trafford to easily collect the ball. In the 27th minute, Matheus Nunes squared the ball for Erling Haaland to tap it in, but the goal was disallowed because the right-back was offside before Semenyo played him through. The Ghanaian then cut inside past Marc Cucurella but fired a poor shot out for a throw-in. Chelsea then had a spell of control but failed to challenge the goalkeeper. Just before halftime, Haaland forced the first significant save of the match when Sánchez instinctively blocked his first-time shot.
After the break, Guardiola brought on Rayan Cherki, who quickly helped create a chance by passing wide to Nico O’Reilly, whose cross was headed over by Semenyo. At the other end, Rodri cleared Moisés Caicedo’s header after Trafford conceded a corner cheaply, and Wesley Fofana missed a chance to head Reece James’ cross on target as Chelsea grew more confident. However, it was the sky blue side of Wembley that celebrated in the 72nd minute when Haaland’s cutback was cleverly flicked in by Semenyo, sneaking inside the far post.
Enzo Fernández nearly managed to respond right away, but Manchester City maintained their lead. In the end, City did enough to secure their second Wembley final victory of the season, claiming the FA Cup for the eighth time in their history. This achievement matches the Blues’ total and sets an ideal tone for their Premier League campaign. As a result, Chelsea suffered their fourth loss in their last four FA Cup finals.
