Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City

Manchester City, still chasing a second FA Cup title in three years to redeem a challenging season, step onto Wembley’s pitch for an exciting semi-final clash against Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

By the time the match kicks off on April 27, both sides will know whether Aston Villa or Crystal Palace awaits the winner in next month’s final.

As their Premier League crown slips away—Liverpool need only a draw against Tottenham Hotspur at 4:30pm on Sunday to secure the title—the defending champions can claim the significant consolation of reaching a third consecutive FA Cup final.

In Pep Guardiola’s nine years at the helm, City have only once missed the semi-finals, and their quarter-final victory over Bournemouth marked a historic seventh straight year reaching this stage.

The designated ‘away’ side have a balanced record, winning three and losing three of their last six semi-final appearances. Even without the injured Erling Haaland near the goal, Guardiola’s squad have gained momentum this spring.

Their 2-1 quarter-final win against Bournemouth is part of a strong run, with five victories in their last six matches, including recent triumphs over Crystal Palace, Everton, and a dramatic last-minute win against Aston Villa, courtesy of Matheus Nunes.

The team under Guardiola's leadership has obtained 14 points during their previous 18 Premier League matches thus guaranteeing a strong position in the Champions League race while consistently scoring in the FA Cup through 21 consecutive matches following their 1-0 loss to Chelsea during the 2020-21 semifinals.

The FA Cup presents Nottingham Forest with an opportunity to return to their first final in 34 years while City City aim to participate for the third time in a row.

The Wembley-bound journey of Nuno Espirito Santo's side toward finishing top-five in the Premier League dual with Manchester City exists mostly because of their powerful penalty-taking abilities which earned them three consecutive penalty shootouts victories.
Jose Mourinho stands alone among Portuguese managers for his accomplishment of reaching the FA Cup final twice at Chelsea and Manchester United and both clubs have secured one Premier League victory over each other this season which implies Sunday's semi will offer intense proceedings.

Santo's men could be forgiven for playing for penalties in the two-hour semi-final marathon because they dominated their three penalties against Exeter City then Ipswich Town and eventually Brighton & Hove Albion.