Red Devils beat Blue Devils in FA Cup final

Manchester City's form has surprisingly dropped since they beat West Ham 3-1 last weekend. Despite still having all the brightest stars on the pitch such as Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva, Man City's coordination was quite erratic, not sharp enough to overcome the opponent's crowded defense. In the 36th minute, Man City had their first shot on target, but Silva's long-range shot was saved by Andre Onana.

Man City's stalemate partly came from Man Utd's sensible approach to the game. Ten Hag did not use Rasmus Hojlund, meaning Man Utd had no striker. In return, they had more players in front of the penalty area. The return of centre-backs Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez seemed to transform Man Utd. These two players not only made decisive saves, but also contributed to the ball progression, helping Man Utd avoid the mistakes they often make at home.

In what was a rather dull match, Josko Gvardiol's mistake proved to be the turning point. Diogo Dalot's long pass to Alejandro Garnacho looked harmless enough, but Gvardiol headed it back as Stefan Ortega had come out. A misunderstanding between the City defender and goalkeeper gave Garnacho the chance to tap the ball into an empty net. Gvardiol has been in fine form towards the end of the season, scoring five goals and assisting two in seven games, but the Croatian's defensive ability may be under scrutiny after this.

While the individuals were not playing well, Man City's tactical system also showed problems. The habit of pushing the defence high to suppress the opponent backfired, causing Guardiola's team to concede two goals in 10 minutes. The second goal also came from the left wing. Garnacho once again beat Gvardiol and his cross allowed Bruno Fernandes to set up Kobbie Mainoo - a player who unexpectedly penetrated and chose a very good position in Man City's penalty area. In this situation, Man City's formation did not have time to retreat and were overwhelmed, leading to a goal. Before that, Man Utd had put the ball in Man City's net in a similar scenario but it was disallowed because Garnacho was offside.

To change the face of Man City, Guardiola brought Jeremy Doku on after the break. The appearance of the Belgian midfielder made a difference. Doku's dribbling on the left wing made Aaron Wan-Bissaka struggle and put Onana's goal in a state of alarm more than once. From two passes from Doku, Foden had a chance to finish in the box but missed, while Haaland hit the crossbar.

Guardiola continued to refresh the attack when he brought in Julian Alvarez to replace De Bruyne. Alvarez's ability to choose a good position helped him have two good chances, but both shots went wide. The most regrettable situation was when he received a pass from Foden and faced Onana but shot wide. Guardiola held his head, showing great regret for this opportunity. This was also the sharpest coordination Man City created in the whole match.

Man City also looked to individuals to make a difference. Kyle Walker's two powerful shots seemed to help them break the deadlock, but both were blocked by Onana. It was not until the 87th minute that Man City got a goal back thanks to Doku's efforts. The 21-year-old midfielder dribbled across the pitch, just outside the Man Utd penalty area, and then shot into the near corner. Onana was a bit slow to dive, so he was helpless even though he touched the ball. However, the remaining time was not enough for Man City to make a comeback.

After the referee blew the final whistle, Ten Hag entered the field to celebrate with each Manchester United player. Varane carried the flag to the area with Man Utd fans to say goodbye. This was the French midfielder's last match for the "Red Devils". Rashford was in tears and was encouraged by Casemiro - a player who was injured and dropped from the squad before the match. Meanwhile, Guardiola argued with the referee for nearly 5 minutes. It is not clear what the Man City coach complained about, but clearly, Man City did not play well. They controlled the ball 74%, shot 14 times but only hit the target four times while Man Utd shot on goal five times despite only having eight shots.