Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola reveals favourite Emirates FA Cup memory ahead of final against Chelsea - 'Something unique'

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Pep Guardiola has revealed which Emirates FA Cup memory he holds particularly close to his heart ahead of Manchester City and Chelsea at Wembley.

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Guardiola will be hoping to win the FA Cup for a third time on Saturday - with full coverage live on TNT Sports and HBO Max - having previously lifted the iconic trophy in 2019 and 2023.

City have also finished as runners-up on two occasions since the Spaniard took over as manager in 2016, including last season when his side fell to a 1-0 defeat against Crystal Palace at the home of English football.

Guardiola admitted that his favourite memory of the competition was City’s 2-1 triumph over bitter rivals Manchester United in 2023, which contributed to an iconic treble.

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”In the FA Cup, the year we won The Treble, because it was the week before we played the UEFA Champions League final in Istanbul,” he said after being asked about his favourite FA Cup memory.

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”People talk, but those two games were something unique. In that moment, I was realising in the second half how tired we were. We had fatigue from the whole season, in that moment.

”You battled against Liverpool [in the previous season], and in the last one or two months, you just had to win and win because otherwise, you won’t win.

”We were completely drained, I felt it in the final in Istanbul, that fatigue from the Premier League.”

City’s other FA Cup win under the Spaniard came in 2019, when they thrashed Watford 6-0.

They suffered their other final defeat in 2024 when The Red Devils avenged their 2023 loss with a 2-1 victory of their own at Wembley.

Despite the defeat, Guardiola said he has no bad memories of the FA Cup, insisting that losing is part of life.

”No, no bad memories,” he said. ”Listen, in football, there are good performances and bad performances, you win, and you lose, good decisions and bad decisions. Many things are involved. I am a guy like every man.

”I am disappointed last season, for example, that we weren’t competing for all the season, but when you arrive in the final stages of tournaments, and you lose, there are no teams that win all the time.”

Guardiola also won the DFB-Pokal and the Copa del Rey during his time in Germany and Spain.

He admitted that every cup competition has a unique personality but praised the FA Cup for serving as a platform for teams from non-league, League Two, and League One to shine.

”It is special,” he said. "I think in Germany it is nice as well, going to Berlin for the final. It is a special place as well.

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”I think the cup in every country is different, but here, it is the oldest, right? In the start, you have all the teams, and that makes it really nice. In 10 years, I have visited all of England, the Conference, League One and League Two.

”The FA Cup is not just Wembley; that is why it is nice. It is nice to go to Wembley, but before, you have to go to Leyton Orient or any of these kinds of games that make this competition so special.”

How to watch Manchester City v Chelsea?

The match will be live on TNT Sports and HBO Max.

Kick off is at 15:00 but pre-match coverage will get underway on TNT Sports and HBO Max at 09:00 UK time with a special Breakfast Show, which can also be broadcast live on talkSPORT for the first hour.

From 11:00 to 13:00, TNT Sports will then start building towards kick-off with appearances from legends and fans of the two clubs, before Steven Gerrard and Joe Cole dive into the tactical match-up.

Then, from 13:00 on TNT Sports 1, the match build-up begins with host Laura Woods joined by the likes of Gerrard, Cole and Joe Hart.

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Stream the Premier League, men’s and women’s FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League and more live on TNT Sports and HBO Max

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