Football May 01, 2026

Man City 2-1 Southampton: Pep Guardiola's men make FA Cup final for fourth consecutive year after mighty Saints scare

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Man City 2-1 Southampton: Pep Guardiola's men make FA Cup final for fourth consecutive year after mighty Saints scare

Manchester City were given an almighty FA Cup scare by Southampton but came from behind to win 2-1 and make the final for the fourth year in a row.

Championship high-flyers Saints kept City at bay and then delivered what looked like a famous FA Cup moment when Finn Azaz curled them in front with 11 minutes remaining.

However, City kept on knocking on the door against a stubborn Saints defence and Jeremy Doku's deflected effort on 82 minutes drew them level.

Extra-time looked on the cards but Nico Gonzalez produced a moment of Premier League quality to win the game with a rasping strike from 25 yards that flew into the top corner.

For a few minutes Southampton dreamt of emulating their 1976 cup heroes by booking a return to the final on the 50th anniversary of that triumph but it was City's treble quest that remained alive.

City will play either Leeds or Chelsea in the final whilst Southampton are back into the heat of a Championship promotion race where they face Ipswich in midweek.

Your Site' Zinny Boswell at Wembley Stadium:

"This game exploded into life in the final 20 minutes to produce a stunning finale.

"It was absolutely heartbreaking for Southampton, who produced a dogged defensive display. Their 20-match unbeaten run coming to and end along with their FA Cup dream.

"City would have hoped for a less taxing game with respect to managing minutes for the Premier League title run-in, but to have responded in that manner will be huge for their momentum.

"Guardiola's changes, Doku in particular, really swung the game in their favour and puts them in touching distance of a domestic treble. That would be quite something in a season when many had ruled them out."

Put to him that City are on the brink of a domestic treble, Guardiola said: "No, too much. That is far away.

"Before the [FA Cup] final and before the Aston Villa game [the last game of the Premier League season] I will tell you if there is a chance. Now it's not. Far, far away.

"It's important to have three days off for the players, and I told them, so don't think about football. Rest. Then we start a season of five games plus the final of the FA Cup."

Southampton boss Tonda Eckert looking ahead to Tuesday night against Ipswich:

"It's going to be a test of maturity for us to put this game to bed as quickly as possible, because we need another top performance on Tuesday.

"We need to make some decisions for the game on Tuesday, we dive into it a little bit more throughout the day tomorrow and I'm sure that we have a very good team on the pitch that is ready to perform.

"I think if you start to create momentum as a team and as a group. I think that you need to do everything to win games for football. I think that sometimes gives you more energy than trying to save a player and save five per cent here or there.

"It's relentless at this part of the season. The approach has always been the same. We try to put the best team out there that we think gives us the highest chances of winning a game of football and that's not going to change."

Tags:

football report

Share this article

Related Posts

Enzo Maresca in Manchester City talks as Pep Guardiola emerges as candidate for Italy job - Paper Talk

Enzo Maresca in Manchester City talks as Pep Guardiola emerges as candidate for Italy job - Paper Talk

The top stories and transfer rumours from Saturday's newspapers...Enzo Maresca is free to sign for any club this summer after resigning from Chelsea,...

EA SPORTS FC 26: Bruno Fernandes the highest-rated player as Premier League Team of the Season is revealed

EA SPORTS FC 26: Bruno Fernandes the highest-rated player as Premier League Team of the Season is revealed

Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes is the highest-rated player in the EA SPORTS FC 26 Premier League Team of the Season.The midfielder who has enjoye...

Chelsea: No shortlist and no No 1 candidate to replace sacked Liam Rosenior - what's next at Stamford Bridge?

Chelsea: No shortlist and no No 1 candidate to replace sacked Liam Rosenior - what's next at Stamford Bridge?

Your Site News chief correspondent Kaveh Solhekol takes a look back at Chelsea's soap opera of a season so far, what led to Liam Rosenior's sacking an...

Scottish Premiership title would be fitting tribute for Rangers captain James Tavernier, says Danny Röhl

Scottish Premiership title would be fitting tribute for Rangers captain James Tavernier, says Danny Röhl

Danny Röhl wants captain James Tavernier to end his time at Rangers with the "beautiful moment" of lifting the Scottish Premiership trophy.The 34-year...

West Brom handed immediate two-point deduction in Championship for breaching EFL financial rules

West Brom handed immediate two-point deduction in Championship for breaching EFL financial rules

West Brom have been handed an immediate two-point deduction for a breach of EFL financial rules, which means they are no longer safe from relegation.T...

Alex Clapham interview: Borussia Dortmund's former set-piece coach on lessons at BVB, Vasco da Gama and more

Alex Clapham interview: Borussia Dortmund's former set-piece coach on lessons at BVB, Vasco da Gama and more

Alex Clapham was set for a job as an assistant manager at a Championship club when Borussia Dortmund came calling. He knew he had to drop everything....