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Manchester United were unable to match the quality of Pep Guardiola’s team in the final of the FA Cup as they fell to a defeat at Wembley Stadium.
Guardiola’s team secured their second trophy of the season by defeating Manchester United in the FA Cup final and moved closer to achieving a treble.
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18:35 - 03.06.2023
Manchester City vs Manchester United: 3 tactics Guardiola employed to defeat Red Devils
Pep Guardiola tactically outsmarted Erik ten Hag as Manchester City defeated their cross-city neighbors Manchester United 2-1 to lift the FA Cup trophy and keep their treble hopes alive.
Man City took the lead in the first minute of the game after a bad clearance from United’s defence with the ball falling at the feet of Ilkay Gundogan who struck it one time leaving De Gea clueless.
United got the equaliser late on in the first half when Grealish handled the ball in the box leading to a penalty to Manchester United which was converted by Bruno Fernandes.
City got the winning goal of the game through another low strike from Ilkay Gundogan which was also his second of the game as City claimed the trophy.
The Red Devils' failure in the FA Cup final was caused by some mistakes made by Ten Hag and here are the mistakes he made that led to the defeat.
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1. Manchester City freedom outside the box
Manchester City’s goals in the game came from outside the box which shows how easy it was for City to use the ball and find enough time to hit from close range.
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18:21 - 03.06.2023
Man City vs Man United: We've made big steps towards next season — Bruno Fernandes
Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes looks forward to next season following the disappointing FA Cup final defeat to Manchester City.
Guardiola has always been a manager that uses multiple styles and not just possessional football. United were looking to sit back and counter but did not complete their homework, leaving too much room for Guardiola’s men to use the ball outside the box.
Both of Man City’s goals scored by Ilkay Gundogan came from a strike outside the box 18 with no United player trying to track his movement.
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2. Putting Fred on Kelvin De Bruyne
Another mistake made by Ten Hag was man-marking Kelvin De Bruyne and trying to limit his presence on the pitch which did not pay off.
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17:01 - 03.06.2023
Gundogan sets new FA Cup record with goal against Manchester United
Gundogan scored within a minute against Manchester United to set a new FA Cup record
Fred was instructed to follow the Belgian throughout the game leaving enough space for the likes of Gundogan and Bernardo Silva to control the game.
The fact that Fred was on De Bruyne did not stop the midfielder from making an impact in the game. The 31-year-old provided the assist for Gundogan’s goals which won the cup for City.
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3. Rashford isolation
Marcus Rashford started as a top nine in the game instead of playing from the flank which left him isolated all game.
The Englishman has been more effective for United from the flank where he scored 19 goals but his new position against City gave him a hard time.
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Ten Hag should have played Rashford on the left wing who could have been more effective than Jadon Sancho who was kept quiet throughout the game.
A proper top nine that will hold up the play for the likes of Rashford, Bruno and Sancho to join the attack would have done more damage to Man City than only Rashford having to do all the work in attack.
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