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Manchester City will continue with their assault on a historic treble on Saturday evening as they take on Sheffield United in the semi-finals of the FA Cup. The Blues are closer than ever to matching Manchester United’s 1998/99 feat of winning the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in a single season and a win on Saturday would secure their place in the final.
The Blues are heading into the match full of confidence after seeing off Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Wednesday night. Pep Guardiola’s men went into the match with a three-goal cushion after an emphatic victory in the first leg and saw the tie out thanks to a 1-1 draw in Munich.
Sheffield United are having a memorable season of their own and are just one win away from securing promotion to the Premier League. Despite that, the Blades are unquestionably massive outsiders going into this one with some bookmakers offering odds of 20/1 on a Sheffield United victory.
The match is set to kick off at 16:45 UK time and viewers in the United Kingdom will be able to watch the match on ITV1 and ITV1 HD.
Manchester City Team News: Will Guardiola rest players ahead of crunch game with Arsenal?
Manchester City have been relatively fortunate in the injury department recently but they are set to be without one of their best players of the season on Saturday. Dutch defender, Nathan Ake, was substituted off at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday night and will be unavailable for this one.
π½πππΌππππ: Nathan Ake is πΌππ of the FA Cup semi-final against Sheffield United, but Pep Guardiola doesn't know the extent of his injury. pic.twitter.com/f6Jmehbekj
— City Report (@cityreport_) April 21, 2023
While Ake is out, Phil Foden is expected to make his first start since his own injury woes. The Englishman was an unused substitute on Wednesday night but will almost certainly start and he will be looking to put in a big performance ahead of City’s biggest game of the season on Wednesday against Arsenal.
The match with Arsenal may well come into Guardiola’s thinking for this one, too. Considering they are playing Championship opposition, the Spaniard may decide to rest several key players including Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne to ensure they are fresh for what many people are labelling the title decider on Wednesday night.
One fringe player who will almost certainly start the game against Sheffield United is goalkeeper, Stefan Ortega. The German stopper usually plays second fiddle to Ederson at Manchester City but has started each of City’s FA Cup games this season and Guardiola will stay loyal to the 30-year-old.
Sheffield United Team News: Can City loaness play against their parent club at Wembley?
Sheffield United have done remarkably well to reach this stage of the competition considering they aren’t a Premier League club. The Blades will definitely be playing their strongest possible team as they look to become the first non-Premier League side to reach the FA Cup final since Cardiff City in 2008.
That doesn’t mean to say that manager Paul Heckingbottom doesn’t have a few selection dilemmas. The most notable absentees for the Blades will be James McAtee and Tommy Doyle and so both men are currently on loan from Manchester City which means they aren’t allowed to play against their parent club.
π£οΈ "Unfortunately, they cannot play, we would have loved because we love young players to get experience."
Pep Guardiola says Tommy Doyle & James McAtee playing against their parent club Man City would have benefited everyone pic.twitter.com/qWcVvm460K
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) April 21, 2023
Both men have enjoyed fantastic seasons at Sheffield United and would have certainly started had they been allowed to. Even City boss Pep Guardiola has admitted that he is disappointed that the pair can’t play with the Spaniard potentially eager to get a closer look at the pair ahead of next season.
Other players who are unavailable for Sheffield United include Rhys Norrington-Davies, Rhian Brewster, Jack O’Connell, Ben Osborn and Enda Stevens. One thing is for sure, goalkeeper Adam Davies will more than likely need to have the game of his life if Sheffield United are to pull off the unthinkable.
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