African Star Fires Man City To FA Cup Glory

Manchester City secured their second trophy of the 2025/26 season after defeating Chelsea 1-0 in the FA Cup final on Saturday afternoon.

Fixture: Chelsea vs Manchester CityScore: 0-1Goalscorers: Semenyo (72')

Cityzens manager Pep Guardiola made the surprise decision to leave Rayan Cherki on the bench as Rodri made his return to the starting line-up, while Erling Haaland was also brought back in after being rested against Crystal Palace on Tuesday night.

Pep Guardiola's charges dominated possession in the early stages of the encounter while the Blues were happy to soak up the pressure with stacked midfield that included Reece James while playing with a back-three.

City's early dominance looked to have paid off at the midway point when Haaland found the back of the net with a close-range finish, however the celebrations were cut short due to the offside flag going up.

Chelsea, meanwhile, could only really hurt City on set-pieces as they struggled to carve out any clear-cut openings, with Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro being kept quiet in the final third for most of the half.

However, Guardiola was certainly not pleased with the lack of chances in open play and opted to withdraw Omar Marmoush for Cherki at the start of the second half, with the Frenchman having registered 12 assists in the league this season.'

The Cityzens got their reward in the in the 72nd minute as Haaland surprisingly turned provider to pick out Antoine Semenyo, who found the back of the net with an instinctive flick that sailed into the far corner.

Guardiola's charges were able to see out he closing stages of the second half and stifle all of Chelsea's threats to claim the FA Cup as Guardiola secures his third crown.

Manchester City: Bournemouth, Aston Villa