Manchester City Aims for Third Consecutive FA Cup Final

Manchester City aims for a third consecutive FA Cup final as they face Nottingham Forest in the semi-final. Guardiola praises Forest's manager Nuno Espirito Santo and provides an update on Ederson's injury status.

Pep Guardiola believes winning the Emirates FA Cup would be a positive note to end Manchester City's domestic season, but it wouldn't restore their dominance after a challenging campaign. City struggled this season, trailing title contenders Liverpool and Arsenal after suffering nine defeats, their highest loss count in two years.

The team's Champions League exit in the knockout phase playoffs added to their disappointments. Despite these setbacks, Guardiola seems to view the FA Cup as an opportunity for a satisfying conclusion to their domestic season, rather than a redemption for their overall campaign.

Pep Guardiola, a six-time league winner as Manchester City boss, is accustomed to success, having not had a trophyless campaign since his first year at the club. Despite this, he's optimistic about the team's prospects for next season, following their FA Cup win.

“The FA Cup win does not give you the certainty to come back to what we were. That is a title, it's a number. Obviously it would be nice to finish in that way, to take a little break before we go to the (Club) World Cup,” Guardiola told reporters.

Guardiola believes that an eight-year cycle contributed to the team's mid-season struggles, but he's confident they'll bounce back. “But I will not change... It can happen to all the teams in the world, not just Manchester City. It surprised me in the mid-season, eight years to arrive at that stage. Now we are third in the table.”

Guardiola attributes the team's drop in form to various factors and is convinced that next season will be better. “There are reasons why we dropped, maybe unexpectedly, too much. I have the feeling that next season will be better. We will compete better. We will be more who we are.”

Manchester City face Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley on Sunday, with Guardiola aiming for a third consecutive final appearance. Forest, under Nuno Espirito Santo, presents a tough challenge as they battle for a Champions League spot and their first FA Cup final in 34 years.

“It would be good to make a third (final), but we have a serious and tough, tough rival,” Guardiola said. “The Nottingham Forest people and fans, it is a long time since they've played the semi-final of the FA Cup, but for many years we have been there in the competition.”

City's potential opponents in the final would be either Crystal Palace or Aston Villa, but Guardiola's focus remains on overcoming Forest first.

𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗙𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗖𝗘

🆚 Nottingham Forest (N)
🏆 #FACup semi-final
🎙️ @PepTeam
⤵️ Watch live

— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 25, 2025

Pep Guardiola praised Nuno Espirito Santo, saying, “He has been incredible, qualifying for Europa League with Wolves and now with Nottingham Forest. He has done a really good job,” highlighting the Portuguese coach's impressive track record.

Meanwhile, Manchester City's Ederson is progressing in his recovery from injury, returning to training. However, Guardiola remains uncertain about the goalkeeper's availability for the FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest. “I don't know if he will be ready for this game. Hopefully for the next one,” he said.

PEP 💬 (On Ederson's fitness) We’ll see. [He] is coming back training a little bit. But I don't know if he’ll be ready for this game, hopefully the next one. pic.twitter.com/e3AA6NIjjU

— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 25, 2025