'We want to win the trophy' - Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola eyeing FA Cup glory over Crystal Palace after pain of Manchester United loss in 2024

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Manchester City will take on Crystal Palace in the final of the FA Cup at Wembley on Saturday, looking to avenge last season's defeat. However, Man City boss Pep Guardiola is still disappointed by his side's performance in last season's cup final defeat against rivals Manchester United. Goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo sank City to a 2-1 defeat against The Red Devils last term.

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Pep Guardiola has admitted that he was disappointed by Manchester City's performance in last season's FA Cup final against bitter rivals Manchester United.

Guardiola's side will take on Crystal Palace at Wembley on Saturday in their third FA Cup final in as many seasons, but the Spaniard is still rueing his side's defeat against The Red Devils last campaign.

Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo scored as City slipped to a 2-1 loss in the capital, with Jeremy Doku grabbing a late consolation.

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Guardiola says his side have shown they have what it takes to come out on top in finals in years gone by.

"When we are here, we want to lift the trophy," he said during his pre-match press conference. "Last year, we were disappointed with our performance.

"To win the trophy, you have to be there and win previous games and we have done it many times in previous years."

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City will face a fully-fit Palace squad, with midfield ace Adam Wharton recovering from a knock he picked up in the Premier League clash with Nottingham Forest earlier this month.

The Eagles have turned their season around during an impressive second half to the campaign, and Guardiola believes they have the talent to cause his side problems.

"It is a fantastic team," he added. "They [Crystal Palace] have had a good season, second part. More than a year with Oliver [Glasner] working with the same players.

"[Jean-Philippe] Mateta is strong on long balls, and after that, I would say their quality with [Eberechi] Eze is obvious. [Ismaila] Sarr in the semi-final punished [Aston] Villa a lot. [Adam] Wharton is a really good holding midfielder who links well.

"It is a final, if we played against Villa it would be the same."

In stark contrast to City, this is only the third FA Cup final in Crystal Palace's history.

Their two previous appearances in 1990 and 2016 saw them fall to heartbreaking defeats against Man Utd on both occasions.

Glasner treating FA Cup final like 'normal game'

Despite having the weight of history on his shoulders, Palace boss Oliver Glasner insists his squad are treating it just like any other match.

"It feels like a normal game," he said.

"There’s much more attention and interviews to do during the week, but our preparations have been more or less the same as for a Premier League game, like they were for the semi-final and quarter-final game.

"We focused on what we want to do tomorrow, we analysed Manchester City, but 90% we talked about us.

"We can influence what we want to do. The focus was on our game, and maybe having one or two small adjustments, because the players did very well in the last couple of weeks.

"We have a lot of confidence and are looking forward to the final."

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