A 'lifeline' for Chelsea

At 9 PM on May 16th (Vietnam time), Chelsea will face Manchester City in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium.

Báo Tuổi Trẻ•17/05/2026

chelsea - Ảnh 1. — The FA Cup is Chelsea's (left) last hope this season - Photo: AFP

Winning the FA Cup would salvage Chelsea's disastrous season and secure them a place in the Europa League next season.

The Cup of Hope

The 2025-2026 season is drawing to a close like a nightmare for the Stamford Bridge side. Despite massive investments in young players, The Blues are currently languishing in 9th place in the Premier League.

The crisis at the top is also clear evidence of the instability, with the hot seat constantly changing hands from Enzo Maresca (who left in January), to Liam Rosenior (who was recently sacked), and now the faith is placed in interim coach Calum McFarlane - who was previously the U21 coach.

Having just gone through a terrible run of form (losing 8 of their last 11 matches) and only managing a 1-1 draw against Liverpool last week, the FA Cup is Chelsea's only lifeline. If they beat Man City to lift England's oldest cup for the ninth time, Chelsea will officially secure a place in the Europa League, thus offering some consolation to their fans.

To achieve that, manager McFarlane needs his players to learn valuable lessons from their two encounters with Pep Guardiola's team this season. The Guardian commented that "playing an attacking game against Man City right now is tantamount to suicide."

Instead, Chelsea must organize their formation deep, maintaining extremely tight spacing in the midfield, just as they brilliantly did to hold Manchester City to a 1-1 draw at the Etihad in January. The timely return of center-back Levi Colwill after 10 months out with injury, combined with the defensive capabilities of captain Reece James and Enzo Fernandez, will be the foundation of The Blues' defense.

In attack, The Blues will have to make the most of the rare opportunities they create to turn the tide. Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro are Chelsea's biggest hopes in attack to spring a surprise.

chelsea - Ảnh 2. — Can manager Pep Guardiola help Man City beat Chelsea? - Photo: Reuters

Man City are going all out.

In contrast to their opponents' makeshift circumstances, Man City entered the final in high spirits. If they won, Pep Guardiola's team would bring home their 17th major trophy under his reign.

Furthermore, winning the FA Cup would help Man City complete a domestic double this season (having already beaten Arsenal in the League Cup final). It would also create the perfect psychological momentum in the Premier League title race against Arsenal.

Despite being considered the clear favorites, Man City carries a puzzling "jinx" at Wembley. Although they made history as the first team to reach four consecutive FA Cup finals, they suffered defeats in the last two seasons against Man United and Crystal Palace.

Manager Pep Guardiola will undoubtedly demand that his players give their all to break the jinx and avoid equaling Chelsea's unfortunate record of "losing three consecutive FA Cup finals" (2020-2022).

Despite the absence of key midfielder Rodri, Manchester City's strength remains undiminished. Phil Foden recently shone in central midfield, alongside explosive players like Rayan Cherki and Doku. Most notably, "goal-scoring machine" Erling Haaland will be in peak physical condition after being rested in the match against Crystal Palace earlier this week. The Norwegian striker has yet to score in 15 appearances in semi-final and final matches since arriving in England in 2022.

However, anything can happen in a final. Chelsea could inflict another defeat on Man City, just like in the 2021 Champions League final, if they play complacently.