Manchester City edged Chelsea 1-0 at Wembley, Antoine Semenyo scoring in the 72nd minute to deliver Pep Guardiola another FA Cup on Saturday and leave E. Maresca’s first season in charge of Chelsea without silverware.
Guardiola trusted a 4-2-3-1 built on Matheus Nunes, Abdukodir Khusanov, Marc Guéhi, and Nico O’Reilly across the back, Rodri and Bernardo Silva screening, with Jérémy Doku and Semenyo flanking Omar Marmoush behind Erling Haaland. Maresca answered with a 3-4-2-1: Wesley Fofana, Levi Colwill, and Jorrel Hato anchoring the back line, Malo Gusto and Marc Cucurella as wing backs, Moisés Caicedo and Enzo Fernández in midfield, and Cole Palmer plus Reece James supporting João Pedro. The early pattern reflected those shapes, City’s extra midfielder rotating possession while Chelsea tried to spring Palmer between the lines.
Chelsea’s discipline frayed before the interval. Fernández collected a yellow card for a foul in the 29th minute, Cucurella followed with another three minutes later. City were kept to half-chances yet their control deepened once Guardiola introduced Rayan Cherki for Marmoush at the restart. The substitute gave Doku license to isolate Hato, and with Khusanov booked for a 56th-minute foul City still kept the tempo and territorial advantage.
The breakthrough owed to patience rather than spectacle. Haaland found the one decisive touch, supplying Semenyo, and the winger converted in the 72nd minute. Maresca responded immediately by replacing Cucurella with Pedro Neto in the 74th minute, later folding in Liam Delap for James at the 83rd minute and Alejandro Garnacho for João Pedro at the 86th minute. Chelsea could not make possession stick in the final third, their single shot on target cleared off the line by Rodri, and Caicedo’s yellow card for arguing in the 90+2nd minute underlined their frustration.
Guardiola’s bench management told. Substituting Mateo Kovačić for Rodri in the 65th minute kept City’s midfield fresh enough to close the game, and Cherki’s direct running forced Chelsea’s back three to retreat. City’s defensive triangle of Guéhi, Khusanov, and Rodri—before his withdrawal—smothered Palmer, while Doku’s 1v1 work repeatedly forced Gusto and Fofana into deeper positions. Chelsea’s reliance on James as an interior playmaker meant that once he left, Maresca’s side lost their best distributor between the lines.
Statistics
- Possession: Chelsea 44 percent, Manchester City 56 percent
- Shots on target: Chelsea 1, Manchester City 4
- Total shots: Chelsea 7, Manchester City 9
- Corner kicks: Chelsea 4, Manchester City 4
- Saves: Robert Sánchez 4, James Trafford 0
- Fouls: Chelsea 15, Manchester City 13
City’s win hands Guardiola another domestic trophy and keeps momentum for their final league push, while Chelsea must turn quickly toward squad planning under Maresca after falling short at Wembley. For coverage of the relegation fight elsewhere in England, read Nice vs. Metz: Côte d’Azur survival showdown at the Allianz Riviera.
