Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, has stated that his team will need to perform at a high level in order to win the FA Cup on Saturday. Guardiola noted that the Manchester United team that his team defeated with a score of 6-3 back in October has changed significantly.
The matchup between Pep Guardiola and Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United will not only be a historic first meeting of the two Manchester rivals in an FA Cup final, but it will also be the second of three goals that City must achieve in order to win the triple.
“What Manchester (United) are doing in the last five or six months, they’re a completely different team to what we faced at the beginning of the season,” Guardiola said during a news conference on Friday. “What Manchester (United) are doing in the last five or six months,” he said.
“Finals are all about how you will be in the next 90 minutes, in that moment,” he went on to say. “It makes no difference what you’ve accomplished in the past or how talented you are. Because this is only one game, we have to do all in our power to win.
City, who were almost untouchable in the last stages of the Premier League season to win their third consecutive title, will face Inter Milan on June 10 in Istanbul in the final of the Champions League, which is the only trophy City has not yet won. Inter Milan will be City’s opponent in this matchup.
It has been reported by Guardiola that his team is in good physical shape for their match at Wembley on Saturday. According to him, Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish “trained well” in the two most recent sessions, while Stefan Ortega will continue to start in goal for City after doing so during the entirety of the club’s FA Cup campaign.
City are attempting to win a triple, which has only been accomplished by one other English club: Manchester United in 1999. Ten Hag’s team would like nothing more than depriving City of their opportunity to realize their ambition.
Guardiola was complimentary of the work that the Dutch manager had done during his first season at Manchester United, during which he led the club to a third-place finish in the Premier League and won the League Cup in February.
“I cannot say that we are friends… but he exemplifies our profession as a manager in the most admirable way that is even remotely possible.” The Spaniard stated, “I believe that Manchester United has an exceptional manager for a number of years.”
City are ready for the game on Saturday to be decided by a penalty shootout as it has been the case in a number of games this season, including Sevilla’s victory against AS Roma in the Europa League final on Wednesday.
“The most important skill is the mentality,” remarked Guardiola.
While City is looking to win their seventh FA Cup, United is now vying for their 13th title.