Pep Guardiola emphasized the importance of winning the FA Cup for Manchester City, despite acknowledging that victory in Saturday’s final would not fully erase what has been a disappointing season by the club’s high standards.
City were dethroned as Premier League champions by Liverpool for the first time in five years, and if they fail to defeat Crystal Palace at Wembley, they risk ending the season without a major trophy for the first time since Guardiola’s debut campaign in 2016/17. With just two league games remaining, City are battling to secure a top-five finish in the Premier League, which would grant them Champions League qualification.
However, Guardiola maintained that all the team’s focus is on lifting the FA Cup in what marks their third consecutive final appearance.
“That’s the issue, right? The FA Cup is not the first choice (trophy). Once we are here, of course, we want to win it. It’s massively important. But to win the trophy, you have to get here, and to get here, you must win previous games. And we have done that for many years,” Guardiola said at his pre-match press conference.
Erling Haaland, who made his return from a six-week injury absence in last weekend’s goalless draw with already-relegated Southampton, is expected to start in the final. Guardiola also clarified that he is not concerned about managing Kevin De Bruyne’s minutes to ensure the midfielder is available for the team’s final home match of the season against Bournemouth on Tuesday.
However, the City manager is cautious about rushing Ballon d’Or winner Rodri back into action. The Spanish midfielder is close to returning after a lengthy recovery from a cruciate ligament injury suffered in September.
“Rodri is much, much better,” Guardiola confirmed. “I am waiting for the doctors to tell me when he is ready. When they do, he will start. We don’t want to take a risk and go backwards.”
