Blues beat city rivals Manchester United in a close encounter at Wembley
It seems that Sheikh Mansour's millions are starting to pay off for the blue side of Manchester after Saturday. Manchester City reached their first FA cup final in 30 years after beating Manchester United 1-0 in the first of the two 2010-2011 FA Cup semi finals this year. It was their first victory against the reds since they beat them 2-1 last January in the 1st leg of their Carling Cup semi final. However, times have changed since then, and Mancini seems to have finally created a squad capable of challenging with the cream of the crop.
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Jumping for joy: Roberto Mancini & co follow in their fans footsteps with the 'Poznan'
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Manchester United started off the better side though, and there was a feeling that City were still trying to adapt to the proceedings. They could hardly get out of their own half, and were letting veteran Paul Scholes control the game from midfield. United's dominance seemed to have paid off when some slick passing on the edge of the area put Dimitar Berbatov through on goal. However, keeper Joe Hart blocked the shot superbly and knocked it out for a throw in. Seconds later, Berbatov missed an absolute sitter from yards, hitting the ball over the bar.
Perhaps this was a wake up call for City, who started to grow in self-belief as the interval drew closer. Gareth Barry mustered up their first chance of the game, turning in the area and finding the side netting. There were then a host of chances in the last 5 minutes from the blues, starting with Mario Balotelli's stunning 30 yard strike which 40 year old Van der Sar dealt with well, turning it over the bar. The resulting corner from Adam Johnson found Joleon Lescott, who fired over from yards. He should've done much better. Another Adam Johnson corner close to half time found captain Kompany on the edge of the area, who hit a first time shot just wide.
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| Yaya Toure puts Manchester City 1-0 up at Wembley |
Their self belief continued into the second half, and they eventually found the breakthrough in the 52nd minute through a Yaya Toure goal. An uncharacteristic mistake from Michael Carrick conceded possession to the Ivorian who took full advantage of the mistake, racing past both Carrick and United captain Nemanja Vidic, before slotting a composed finish past Edwin van der Sar. United couldn't seem to regroup, and Manchester City were rampant. Adam Johnson's shot almost crept in from the near post and from another corner, Joleon Lescott headed just wide, pouncing upon another error in the Manchester United defence.
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| And the Ivorian sent the city fans into raptures, with their 'Poznan' |
United's best chance came through a Nani freekick, which deflected off Balotelli's head. Joe Hart once again did brilliantly and saved the shot onto the bar. Alex Ferguson decided to bring on Javier Hernandez for winger Antonio Valencia to bring some pace up front, but United's chances all but ended with 17 minutes left, when Paul Scholes was deservedly sent off for a high tackle on Pablo Zabaleta. Manchester City held on well and when the final whistle went, a party started in the West side of the stadium, whilst the east side of Wembley was all but empty.
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| United fans flock out of Wembley whilst a party occurs on the other side |
They will play Stoke City in the final on May 14th, and if they were to win that, Roberto Mancini and his team will go down in Manchester City folklore and finally lift that monkey off the back of the Eastland's outfit. It won't be an easy task though, against a Stoke side determined to win their first ever FA Cup, and their first trophy since 1972. And of course there's the small matter of revenge for Potters manager Tony Pulis, who's only other trip to Wembley was ruined in injury time against Manchester City, who scored twice in injury time to level their Division 2 playoff with Gillingham.
Overall, a great day for all concerned with Manchester City, who will look forward to another visit to the capital in a months time.
Did Manchester City deserve their semi final victory?
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