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City are improving their image at the end of the season
“Manchester City” did not exceed expectations and managed to win the English Cup (1-0) at the expense of “Chelsea” at “Wembley” stadium today, Saturday.
Although the Blues were solid in defense for most of the match, their attack was modest and did not pose any significant threat to City’s goal.
City controlled the match with their usual style of possession, while Chelsea relied on organized defending with limited quick starts.
But the irony is that the Sky team scored their only goal through Antoine Simenho after a quick counter-attack that ended with Erling Haaland’s pass to the Ghanaian winger, who flicked the ball into the back of the net with a magical backheel.
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Chess match
The encounter resembled a game of chess as the tactical aspects dominated the technical aspects, especially from Chelsea, who lacked creativity in the attacking third.
Guardiola’s defense also managed to neutralize the threat of Cole Palmer and the rest of the Blues’ stars, while City took advantage of second-half fatigue.
Sky had 56% of the ball to Chelsea’s 44%. He also shot 9 times (4 inside the circle), compared to 7 for the London team (1 inside the circle).
The Expected Goals Value (xG) was 0.93 for City, compared to 0.82 for Chelsea, whose players touched the ball 20 times in the opposition penalty area compared to 27 for the current Premier League runners-up.
The crown took City’s tally to 8 FA Cup titles (equal with Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham), their second title of the season following the League Cup, which they won 2-0 against Arsenal.
Historic number for Guardiola
Pep Guardiola also became the first manager ever to win 3 or more Premier League titles (6), 3 or more European Cup/Champions League titles (3), 3 or more FA Cup titles (3), and 3 or more League Cup titles (5), according to the Opta Stats Network.
Although City’s current season looked poor for many periods, the team showed their strength of character in the end to win both league titles and are still in strong contention for the Premier League title, just two points behind the leaders the Gunners with two rounds to go.
As for Chelsea, currently under caretaker manager Callum McFarlane, they will need a lot of work to rebuild their reputation at local and continental levels after a difficult season at all levels despite winning the Club World Cup last summer.
The Blues have been hit hard at the crucial stage of the season as they currently sit 9th in the Premier League with 49 points, a long time in the Champions League qualification positions.
