Comments and predictions for Coventry vs Man United, FA Cup semi-finals
Will Man United make a date with Man City in the FA Cup final? Photo: MUFC
In the 2022-2023 season, Liverpool and Chelsea meet in the Carabao Cup final. This season, they recreated that and even repeated the winning result for The Kop.
In the 2022-2023 season, Manchester City and Manchester United meet in the FA Cup final. This season, they are only one match away from repeating what Liverpool and Chelsea just did.
After Man City beat Chelsea 1-0 in the semi-finals on Saturday night, Man United will play Coventry City tonight (9:30 p.m. – Vietnam time). With the draw leading to an opponent playing in the Championship, Manucians are naturally optimistic about their chances of winning tickets to the final for the second year in a row.
Confrontation history has seen Man United win 37 matches in 67 meetings with Coventry. However, in the last meeting, the victory belonged to the West Midlands team – 2-0 in the League Cup in September 2007.
Of course, this statistic is only for reference, but somewhere there is a hidden danger for Man United, just like the match time has to be adjusted.
Accordingly, while Man City’s match against Chelsea takes place at 5:15 p.m. (local time), Man United and Coventry take the field at 3:30 p.m. Despite the FA’s request for a 4:00 p.m. time frame, the Capital Police did not agree because of concerns about public order issues.
A change in policy by the Metropolitan Police over the past 12 months has placed matches involving Man United or Liverpool as “high risk”.
Expected lineup of Coventry City
Expected lineup of Coventry City
Previously, February’s Carabao Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea had to be moved to 3pm. Last year’s FA Cup final between Man United vs Man City also had to take place at 3pm.
That is the external risk, but what is the internal risk with the “Red Devils”? That could be because they themselves underestimate their opponents – the last time the team went to Wembley was the EFL Trophy final in 2017 (won by Oxford United 2-1).
Or if we don’t underestimate the team that only reached the FA Cup semi-finals for the second time (in 1987, Coventry reached the semi-finals and then won the championship), coach Erik ten Hag’s problem continues to be the defense with a series of injuries.
Expected lineup of Man United
Expected lineup of Man United
Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane, Jonny Evans are all absent due to injury, Ten Hag only has Harry Maguire and young player Willy Kambwala for the central defender position.
Man United is also having a series of 4 consecutive matches without winning (draw 3, lose 1), so the mentality is not really “out”.
Meanwhile, a very surprising statistic is that Coventry scored 19 goals in the FA Cup this season – more than any other team, including Man City.
Coventry’s opponents on the road, besides Wolves in the quarterfinals, are not strong. But it also shows their spirit and determination. And in the context of “no team is still afraid of Man United” and the match taking place on a neutral field, coach Mark Robins’ team is ready to bring some surprises.
The “Red Devils” are rated much higher when the handicap is 1 1/4, but it is possible that Bruno Fernandes and his teammates can still “bully” their opponents.
