The FA Cup semi-finals will take place at Wembley Stadium over the weekend, with Manchester United meeting mid-table Championship side Coventry City and Manchester City and Chelsea facing each other in a clash of power, with the winners of the two games going on to the final for the trophy.
It is widely believed that even if Manchester United's recent form is a bit bad, the chances of winning against lower-tier teams are quite high, and if they reach the final, there is a possibility of a repeat of last season's final and a repeat of the Manchester derby. However, as things stand, Manchester United and Chelsea may have a better chance of meeting in the final.
Manchester United's progress to the last four was an easy time with their first three opponents, beating Wigan, Newport and Nottingham Forest, before facing Liverpool in the quarter-finals before the winner was decided until late extra-time. Coventry didn't face too many opponents along the way, beating Oxford United, Sheffield Wednesday, Maidsto United and Wolves respectively, with only Wolves being opponents from the Premier League.
Chelsea's path to qualification was a little more difficult, with a light win over Preston North End and Premier League giants Aston Villa before beating Leeds United and Leicester City to reach the last four. Manchester City were the toughest of the four, with a big win over Huddersfield Town coming up with three Premier League opponents, knocking out Tottenham, Luton Town and Newcastle.
Manchester United have won the FA Cup 12 times, second only to FA Cup kings Arsenal (14) and the second-most winners, while Chelsea are close behind with eight, Manchester City with seven, and Coventry City beat Tottenham once more than 30 years ago. Therefore, the four teams in the semi-finals have all won the championship and have had the last laugh in the FA Cup.
In recent times, Manchester United and Coventry City have both fallen into a brief slump, with Coventry losing two consecutive Championship games and essentially missing out on the chance to play in the play-offs. Since Manchester United's reversal of Liverpool, they have not won four games in a row, especially conceding goals at the end of the game three times in a row, completely losing hope of fighting for four in the Premier League, falling to seventh place, and even qualifying for the three major European Cups next season may not be able to retain.
As a result, Ten Hag's ability to stay has become the focus of speculation, with names such as Graham Potter, De Zerbi and Gareth Southgate, constantly being mentioned by the media, seemingly as favourites for the new manager. Some fans believe that Rashford and other players "do not work hard", which is an important reason for the team's predicament, but when you come to Wembley Stadium, I believe that every player will give it their all, this is a game that cannot be missed, and it is only a stone's throw away from the championship.
With no European assignments, Chelsea have been able to focus on domestic competition this season, reaching the final of the Carabao Cup and losing to Liverpool, who are young players, and Pochettino's coaching ability has been questioned. Chelsea showed good form with a six-goal win over Everton last week, with Palmer in particular having scored four goals on their own, already catching Erling Haaland as joint top scorer in the Premier League. Chelsea, who have rested for a week, have a clear physical advantage over Manchester City, who have just experienced a penalty shootout.
Although Manchester City is at the top of the Premier League, the road to defending the Champions League has failed. Facing Real Madrid twice home and away, the two sides contributed a wonderful goal battle, which deserved to be an early final. In the penalty shoot-out, Manchester City had to take the penalty in person because many of the penalty take-takers had already left, and goalkeeper Ederson could only put on the pitch and take the penalty himself. In the end, Silva and Kovacic missed penalties and Manchester City lost at home, stopping in the quarter-finals and bidding farewell to the Champions League.
It is worth mentioning that Haaland and De Bruyne, two excellent penalty takers, were both replaced in extra time, which once puzzled fans. After the game, Pep Guardiola specifically explained that this was because the two players themselves asked to leave, including Akanji, who felt that they could not hold on to the end, so they had to make a substitution.
Haaland missed extra-time and Kevin De Bruyne left in the final minutes to hold on to the penalty shoot-out, setting the stage for defeat. Look at Jude Bellingham and other Real Madrid players, gritting their teeth and fighting until the final moments and successfully hitting the penalty. Since the end of the national team break, Manchester City has met strong opponents such as Arsenal, Aston Villa, Real Madrid, etc., perhaps, the whole team is really tired, even the best players in the world.
Therefore, it will be a very difficult game for Manchester City to meet Chelsea in just three days after they are out of the Champions League. I don't know, after the failure to defend the Champions League, will Manchester City fail to defend the FA Cup again within a week, lose two titles in three days, and let Manchester United and Chelsea meet in the final for two seasons?