Chelsea vs Manchester City
It’s time for the showpiece of the English football season – what is, for me, still the greatest cup competition in the world.
The fact this year’s FA Cup Final will be contested by two big clubs who went onto become Premier League giants, once taken over by billionaires, demonstrates the footballing world which exists in 2026.
The arrivals of Roman Abramovich (2003) and Sheikh Mansour (2008) completely changed the landscape of the English game and you will find very few (although they do exist) fans of Chelsea or Manchester City who will regret what has happened to their heroes ever since.
Saturday afternoon at Wembley now represents another chance for more silverware to arrive – something that has become a regular occurrence at both clubs in the modern era.
Talking Points
At the turn of the year, it’s probably fair to say that Chelsea’s under 21s head coach, Calum McFarlane, would not be expecting to be on duty with the first team, let alone leading household names out at Wembley.
Yet here we are, five months after his first match in charge as interim manager – against City – and he’s now back in the hotseat for the closing stages of a campaign.
I argued at the time that never had an appointment better demonstrated a club which is not operating the way any well-run organisation should.
The fact that McFarlane’s training ground pass had to be amended to grant him access to the club’s press conference room on January 2 just added weight to the view that chaos has overshadowed the west Londoners in recent years.
He took charge for two games before the now departed Liam Rosenior came in.
McFarlane is now back hoping to salvage Chelsea’s season and deliver FA Cup 2026 highlights.
After six league defeats on the bounce, the west Londoners finally had something positive to hang onto last weekend as they showed signs of life in a 1-1 draw at Liverpool.
The return of centre-back Levi Colwill, making his first appearance for 10 months, coincided with them switching to a back three for just the third time this season. Whether McFarlane opts for the same again remains to be seen.
City were in action in midweek as they kept alive their title hopes with a 3-0 home success over a Crystal Palace side who have one eye on the forthcoming Europa Conference Final.
Like his Eagles counterpart Oliver Glasner, City boss Pep Guardiola made changes with Wembley in mind, leaving out the attacking trio of Erling Haaland, Rayan Cherki and the in-form Jeremy Doku.
They are far better placed to cope with such alterations though and Phil Foden, who has been on the fringes most of this term, sparked the game into life.
City were also handed a boost by the return of Croatian defender Josko Gvardiol, playing for the first time since he sustained a broken shinbone against Chelsea in the league.
He may be named on the bench on Saturday as City, restored to full strength, aim to secure a cup double.
For Chelsea, they just want to save their season.
History
Ten of the last 13 matches have all been City victories.
That includes a league double last term when goals from Haaland and Mateo Kovacic secured an opening weekend success at Stamford Bridge.
The return fixture in Manchester went the way of the hosts too as Gvardiol, Haaland and Phil netted in a 3-1 win.
After a goalless first half at Stamford Bridge, City ran out 3-0 league winners last month, courtesy of goals from Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guéhi, and Doku.
Early in the New Year, though, Chelsea stunned City with a last minute equaliser at the Etihad Stadium.
The club had parted company with manager Enzo Maresca a few days earlier and a first half strike from Dutch midfielder Tijjani Reijnders seemed set to seal a 1-0 success.
However, City could not get over the line and, in the fifth minute of stoppage time, Chelsea claimed an unlikely point.
Enzo Fernandez actually miskicked his first attempt and then saw his second saved by Gigi Donnarumma, but his persistence paid off and the third effort found the bottom corner to earn a 1-1 draw.
Chelsea have not defeated City since the 2021 Champions League Final – a six week period in which they also beat them in the league and the FA Cup semi-final.
They were two very different clubs when they first met back in 1907 in the former Division One.
Billy Brawn and George Hilsdon were the Chelsea scorers on that occasion in a 2-2 draw.
Overall, City have 69 successes compared to 71 Chelsea triumphs and 42 draws.
Betting Tip
The SBOTOP FA Cup 2026 betting odds are as one-sided as they get between two clubs of such wealth.
I do think City will edge it but they will come up against a Chelsea side with a strong game plan.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT)
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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