- Man City beat Chelsea
- Narrowly edged it at Wembley
- Semenyo made the difference
Manchester City have won a second domestic trophy this season, and despite a pretty average performance, the victory never looked in doubt.
Here are five observations we have made from the match which has seen Man City become the FA Cup winners again after two successive years of disappointment in the competition.
Man City’s first half stats did not match their performance
City led Chelsea on expected goals, shots on target, touches in the opposition box, and just about every other notable stat.
However, the Blues were the team who seemed more likely to take the lead, with Matheus Nunes and Abdukodir Khusanov both forced to make important interventions.
It was a disappointing start made by the Citizens, but like the Carabao Cup final, they knew there were going to be chances after the break.
Benching Rayan Cherki was a mistake
There was a lack of creativity from Man City in the first half. In fact, zero big chances were created, and it showed.
Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush had a combined 18 touches between themselves, highlighting that playing two centre forwards was not working.
Cherki came on in the second half and there was a noticeable difference for the better in the way City played, even if the Frenchman himself did nothing in particular which stood out.
City needed a moment of magic
If truth be told, it never looked like Man City were going to score unless someone came up with a moment of brilliance.
Antoine Semenyo was the man to deliver on this front, with a terrific backheeled effort which could not have been placed any further into the corner.
The Ghanian received a backheeled pass from Phil Foden before scoring against Crystal Palace, but his goal in the FA Cup final was even more impressive.
Chelsea were a favourable opponent to face
Man City won the FA Cup final without actually having to play an especially good game of football.
Ultimately, Chelsea had very little to offer going forwards, and rarely made it into positions where they could create real danger.
When they did, City were able to defend the situations well, and the likes of Joao Pedro frequently went down and unsuccessfully appealed for free kicks and penalties.
There may have been a couple of half-chances, but in the end, Pep Guardiola will be quite pleased that Chelsea were the team who made it to the ultimate round.
City are the most consistent team in England
Arsenal might have been the consistency kings in the Premier League, but Man City have been better in this aspect when it comes to all domestic competitions.
They have won two trophies when many people were talking about the Gunners recording a treble triumph.
The Sky Blues deserve a lot of credit for their successes, and the season is not over yet. Two more wins in the Premier League, and there is still a chance to win all three of England’s major trophies!
