LONDON – In a dramatic FA Cup semi-final clash at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, Manchester City engineered a late, thrilling comeback to defeat Championship side Southampton 2-1, securing their spot in the 2024 FA Cup final and keeping their dream of a historic domestic treble alive.
Southampton, a second-tier side that had already dumped Premier League title contenders Arsenal out of the competition in the previous round, came within minutes of pulling off another massive upset. With just 11 minutes left on the clock, midfielder Finn Azaz produced a moment of magic to put the Saints ahead: after collecting a perfectly weighted pass from Kuryu Matsuki, Azaz spun away from his marker and unleashed an unstoppable strike into the top corner of the net, sending Southampton’s loyal fanbase into delirium. The result looked set to repeat the quarter-final upset that saw Arsenal crash out of the tournament, leaving City on the brink of elimination.
But Manchester City, even with a heavily rotated starting lineup, showed the champion’s grit that has defined Pep Guardiola’s tenure. Guardiola had made eight changes to the side that climbed to the top of the Premier League table with a 1-0 win over Burnley just three days earlier, resting key stars including Erling Haaland, Bernardo Silva and Jeremy Doku. The rotated side struggled to find rhythm in the first half, with Southampton having an early goal from Leo Scienza ruled out for offside, while Omar Marmoush – starting in place of Haaland – wasted City’s best first-half chance, spooning his effort over the bar.
After the break, City stepped up their intensity long before Guardiola turned to his bench to bring on his reserved first-team attackers. Haaland replaced Marmoush shortly after the hour mark, followed by Doku, Savinho and Nico O’Reilly, as City sought to break down Southampton’s well-organized, deep-lying defence. After Azaz gave Southampton the shock lead, it took just minutes for City to respond. Doku, one of the substitute introductions, hit a low effort from the edge of the penalty area that deflected off Southampton defender James Bree, wrong-footing goalkeeper Daniel Peretz and finding the back of the net to level the score.
Three minutes before full time, City completed their comeback. Winger Nico Gonzalez picked up the ball 25 yards from goal and rifled a thunderous long-range strike past Peretz, putting City ahead for good. In stoppage time, Southampton pushed everything forward, with Peretz even venturing forward for a late set piece in a bid to force an equaliser, leaving his goal wide open. Savinho had an open goal to add a third for City, but Matsuki raced back to make a goal-line clearance, denying the Premier League side a more flattering scoreline.
The result brings an end to Southampton’s impressive 20-match unbeaten run across all competitions, a streak that has lifted them into strong contention for an immediate return to the Premier League via automatic promotion this season. While Southampton can hold their heads high after pushing the treble-chasing champions to the brink, they will be left to rue what could have been, missing out on their first FA Cup final appearance since 2003.
For Manchester City, the win makes them the first club in English football history to reach four consecutive FA Cup finals. Guardiola’s side remain firmly on track to match their own 2018/19 historic achievement, when they became the first and only English side to claim a domestic treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup. With City already through to the FA Cup final and still top of the Premier League table, that historic repeat is now just a few wins away.