UK Edition
Early Gabriel Jesus goal maintains aura of invincibility for Man City as they scrape past Brighton into FA Cup final
Manchester City 1 Brighton 0
This remorseless Manchester City winning machine will be back in London for two more games in the next seven days alone, their place in the FA Cup final now safely booked, and the great trophy hunt of 2019 alive for another ten days at least.
“A miracle” was how Pep Guardiola described this run, although he prefers not to utter the Q-word. That said, the unprecedented quadruple, a clean sweep domestically and victory in the Champions League, will still be a possibility until April 17 at the earliest. That is when City meet Tottenham Hotspur in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final and they play the first leg on Tuesday.
Only once before in the modern game have a side gone this far into the season with the genuine possibility of the quadruple – that was Manchester United, in the 2008-09 season, who finally ran out of steam on April 19 when they lost their FA Cup semi-final. The numbers are starting to stack up for City, who made it 14 straight victories at Wembley, including the League Cup final penalty shoot-out triumph here, since they lost at Newcastle on Jan 29.
They are at Spurs, then at Crystal Palace a week on Sunday, and it will take something significant to disrupt the rhythm of a team that is so well-versed in the art of winning. This was a different kind of triumph for City, against an opponent who were in the game to the very end having conceded Gabriel Jesus’s goal within the first four minutes.
“I will announce something,” Guardiola declared later. “It is almost impossible to win the quadruple – almost. Put it in the headlines, guys. Almost impossible. Surviving in that stage of the competitions is already a miracle.”
He said, not unreasonably, that given what his team had achieved the previous year, with 100 points in the title race, he believed that the tenacity in which they had approached the new season had impressed him the most.
“The year after when you have the tendency to be arrogant, or a little more presumptuous, or think you are something that really you are not – and still we are there. That’s why it’s incredible what these players have done before. We are going to try until the end every game.”
Guardiola’s team had survived just one major scare, when Kyle Walker reacted badly to a shove from the Brighton winger, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, after 32 minutes as the ball ran out of play. The two squared up and were forehead to forehead when Walker pulled his face down sharply and away. It was not quite the forward motion of a headbutt, although it was marginal enough that the video assistant referee, Paul Tierney, reviewed the incident.
There was a brief period of inactivity when the screen announced a “red card review” and Wembley awaited the verdict from Stockley Park, the VAR HQ nine miles west, where Tierney was watching replays. Walker was reprieved this time and would come off at half-time, to be replaced by Danilo.
Guardiola said he had not seen the incident and that Walker had a problem with his back. Not surprisingly, Chris Hughton had a different view.
“In my opinion, it was a red card,” the Brighton manager said. “We ask the players to be honest. Alireza didn’t make a meal of it. We would have seen in the past players going down clutching their head, rolling on the floor.
“I’ve see the action [by Walker] and in numerous circumstances that action would have got somebody a red card. There was sufficient force.”
He was, he said, “even more disappointed” that it was a VAR decision – proof that the new system will not please everyone. On reflection, it felt like VAR got it right. There was no “clear and obvious error” in the original verdict of Anthony Taylor.
Guardiola made much of the threat of Brighton at set-pieces – “they are massive, so tall” – and in those circumstances, Aymeric Laporte was outstanding. In time added on at the end of the game, Brighton had a free-kick that they threw everything at and instead City turned it into a counter-attack from which Raheem Sterling should have scored.
It was tough for Brighton, who might have anticipated defeat but would have hoped that City would need their A-game in order to achieve it. The winger, Anthony Knockaert, was generously awarded the man of the match award. His side had two shots on target.
“I know they had chances and half-chances with the quality they have,” Hughton said. “But I’m struggling to think of a clear chance. And I don’t think that would have happened to them many times this season.”
As for the winning goal, it was brilliantly conceived. Laporte’s crossfield ball to Bernardo Silva was knocked down first time to Kevin De Bruyne. The cross that he produced was the great unplayable delivery, a low, skiddy ball at an angle between goalkeeper and defenders that sat up perfectly for Jesus to stoop down and head in.
City did it all without Sergio Aguero, whose injury against Fulham the previous Saturday meant he was not even in the squad. Benjamin Mendy made his first start since Nov 11. If there was a weakness in the City side then it was his wayward passes and Guardiola persisted with him until 80 minutes, when John Stones came on. Fernandinho’s second-half appearance made a difference, too. Laporte’s goal area clearance from a Shane Duffy first-half header was the closest Brighton came.
“When Sir Alex Ferguson won the treble, not all the games were fantastic wins four or five to zero,” Guardiola said. “Normally the semi-finals, finals, are like this.” He was saying that this semi-final had not been the most engrossing, also acknowledging that his team are in contention to make history.
Full time: Man City 1 Brighton 0
Manchester City are into the FA Cup final!
That was by no means a stroll in the park, but it was only the fact that Brighton remained within a goal's reach that kept City on their toes - otherwise, the underdogs didn't offer a great deal of sustained threat at any stage of the ninety minutes.
Gabriel Jesus's fourth-minute goal, and that early City attacking storm, was just enough to see Pep Guardiola through to his second cup final of the season, and a little step closer to a still improbable-looking quadruple.
63 min - Man City 1 Brighton 0
Knockaert gets a little too excited with some green space in front of him, and whips a cross from the right - intended for Murray - straight out for a goal kick. Meanwhile, Fernandinho is about to come on for City, a clear sign that things aren't going entirely smoothly. De Bruyne will be the one to make way.
59 min - Man City 1 Brighton 0
Bit of spice to this now, as De Bruyne goes down in the corner after a full-blooded challenge from Bernardo. At the other end, Jahanbakhsh draws a foul from Sterling and Brighton have yet another free-kick to put into the box. City deploy their nuclear deterrent of an extremely high line and just about deal with it.
53 min - Man City 1 Brighton 0
Danilo's second contribution is a lunging challenge on Jahanbakhsh, and he's booked! Knockaert has the chance to swing the ball in from the left with Brighton's heavy artillery in the middle...but De Bruyne heads clear at the front post. Then Glenn Murray is bundled over by Nicolas Otamendi - City are oddly rattled here.
Half time: Man City 1 Brighton 0
Not a disaster by any means for Brighton, but this is going pretty much to the script and it's very difficult to see any way back for them other than keeping it to 1-0 and trying to nick one. City have applied pressure in intermittent waves since the early storm that brought about Gabriel Jesus' opener after four minutes.
Kyle Walker was lucky-ish to avoid a red card - even after VAR had a look - for a forehead thrust in the direction of Alireza Jahanbakhsh, but City have otherwise been unworried.
39 min - Man City 1 Brighton 0
A pre-half-time lull at Wembley as Brighton sit back before bursting out on the counter with Bissouma. He spreads the ball out to Knockaert, who tries to find a way around Mendy before settling for a right-foot snapshot to the near post that Ederson watches safely over the bar.
33 min - Man City 1 Brighton 0
Alireza Jahanbakhsh clashes with Walker as the ball rolls out for a goal kick but, as they get to their feet, Walker nods a head rather aggressively towards the Iranian! Referee Anthony Taylor quickly issues a yellow to both, but VAR wants a closer look...there's a little pause...play on.
16 min - Man City 1 Brighton 0
Sterling twists and turns on the edge of the box, before poking the ball out to Benjamin Mendy...who batters a low cross all the way to the other flank and the feet of Knockaert. He's been a curious £50m outlay, but there's still time for him to get involved in City's trophy hunt.
'Raheem is someone that’s just like us'
Raheem Sterling - who it's looking increasingly likely might be a really nice guy - has arranged for 550 pupils from his old school to attend today's semi-final.
Sterling said: “I have a close connection to Ark Elvin Academy, having attended the school myself when it was Copeland Community School, so it is great to be able to give these students the chance to watch a game at Wembley.
“I grew up right next door to the stadium and would dream of one day playing in a cup final or even representing my country there.
“To now be able to play there myself is an honour and this is a great opportunity to give back to the community that helped me get to where I am.”
Mamadou Diallo, a Year 10 student at Ark Elvin, said: “It was an amazing experience going to Manchester City. Meeting Raheem and having the opportunity to ask him questions not only inspired but also motivated everyone in the room.
“Raheem is someone that’s just like us and went to the same school. We know that if we work hard and follow our passion, we can do anything we want.”
FA Cup Semi-Final (Between Unfancied South-Coast Outfit and Northern Powerhouse) Retro Corner, Pt. 2 (1992)
The atmosphere at Highbury for this one, my goodness. Portsmouth send their fans crazy with a late goal from Darren Anderton...only for Liverpool's John Barnes to step in and fix things shortly afterwards:
'I give everything I have and hopefully in the end we can lift a few titles'
Kevin De Bruynestarts for City today, but his role in their quadruple tilt has been a muted one. He's missed a total of 20 weeks through injury this season, and admits he is struggling to reproduce last season's relentless output.
“I had a good performance [against Cardiff] but last year I could do it every three days for almost 60 or 70 games. I can’t reach that tally anymore,” he said. “It’s only if everything goes right – like 13 or 14 games. I give everything I have and hopefully in the end we can lift a few titles.
“I feel sometimes my season had double the length of other players because every time [with an injury] you need to be in, you need to make almost double the hours. You never have a day off because you need to work on your recovery. It’s more draining than to play in the end.
“A lot of the time you’re alone, but you have to do it. I did it and I’m happy I’m back. I’ve been injured and have had to come back three or four times now.”
Asked if he could return to his best before the end of the campaign, De Bruyne added: “No, probably not – not compared with last year. I don’t know what my level is going to be, but I don’t really care. Now it’s the business end and I just need to do what I can to help the team win games. If that means playing five games or 10 games, I’ll take it. It’s been that kind of season.”
'They’ve got little ones in and around you'
Brighton's Shane Duffy - half of that strapping centre-half partnership with Lewis Dunk - spoke to Paul Hayward this week about the prospect of facing Manchester City's quadruple-chasing mosquitoes:
So is Duffy a goal threat Pep Guardiola’s maestros? “Yeah, if we get a free-kick,” he smiles. “Obviously we’re going to be very busy defensively, and if we try to keep as much out as possible they could have a bad day: one of those games where it clicks for us but it doesn’t click for them. That’s what you hope. And with a couple of set-pieces we can use them to our advantage.”
This is a reasonable strategy for a club 15th in the table and only five points off the relegation zone. But before Duffy can go hunting upfield, he must negate the kaleidoscopic passing of a side who have been in semi-finals “hundreds of times.”
The art of frustrating City’s demonic play is, he says, to force them wide: “If you dive in with them they’ll just move it around you. The key is that you don’t want to leave the space for them to run into, space for them to get shots, so you try to keep it compact with as little space as possible for the little ones.
“You know if it goes wide, with crosses, you’ll fancy yourself against crosses, so it’s all about keeping it tight as a unit tight, narrow. I think we’ve got people in there who can deal with crosses. If you open up against them they’ve got the spaces and the pockets, the runners; the space in behind for the Agueros and Jesuses to run into. That’s what they want.
“You’ve just got to go out there and try to be brave defensively, and catch them, catch them on the day when they haven’t turned up and we have.”
36 years in the making: An FA Cup sequel
1982/83 was ultimately not very kind to either Manchester City nor Brighton & Hove Albion.
City had been sitting comfortably in ninth place in the top flight when, in February, manager John Bond - who had turned down an offer from Benfica the previous summer - suddenly resigned.
Five days previously, City had gone to the old Goldstone Ground in the FA Cup fourth round and been given a 4-0 hiding. City's form collapsed from there, and despite not dropping into the relegation zone all season, they were finally condemned to the drop on the final day.
As for the Seagulls, they promptly dumped Liverpool out of the Cup in the fifth round - a quadruple-hunting Liverpool, no less - and went all the way to Wembley, only to Smith-must-score at the final hurdle before being trounced by Manchester United in a replay. Oh, and they got relegated too.
36 years later, the picture is rather different.
It's City who are now still fighting on four fronts while Brighton - doing a solid, if not yet complete, job of Premier League consolidation - have a rather shinier home than the Goldstone these days. Pep Guardiola almost certainly hasn't had his video analysis team studying the goals of Michael Robinson (2), Jimmy Case and Neil Smillie from almost four decades ago, but - somewhere down Manchester City's lengthy list of priorities - is a chance for some obscure revenge.
That's your history. Now for the present. Team news for this FA Cup semi-final on the way shortly...