Pep Guardiola sends Nico Gonzalez message after 'Stevie G special' sends Manchester City into fourth straight FA Cup final

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Pep Guardiola praised Nico Gonzalez after his piledriver sent Manchester City into a record fourth straight FA Cup final at Southampton's expense before demanding that the midfielder begins to shoot more.

Highlights: Gonzalez thunderbolt sees City edge past Southampton to reach fourth successive final

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Gonzalez joined City in a £50million deal from Porto in January 2025, but his match-winning contribution from 30 yards against Saints in a 2-1 win on Saturday was only his fourth goal in 56 appearances across all competitions.

Signed as a defensive midfielder, the 24-year-old is not known for his finishing, but viewers would not have suspected that judging by his ball-striking technique which helped City overcome a scare against their in-form Championship opponents.

In their bid to secure a domestic treble, Guardiola saw his side fall behind as Finn Azaz's brilliant turn and shot sent Southampton into a shock lead at Wembley with just 11 minutes remaining.

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The setback sparked City into life, however and, after Jeremy Doku's deflected effort restored parity, Gonzalez took advantage of having time and space to rifle a crisp finish into the roof of the net to ensure there would be no upset in the first of this weekend's two semi-finals.

City now await the outcome of Chelsea's encounter with Leeds on Sunday, live on TNT Sports and HBO Max, but Guardiola wished to send a clear message to the man who has taken his side into a fourth consecutive FA Cup final - something the Catalan quipped that "not even the Roman Empire" achieved.

"Nico has to believe more in himself," the City boss told TNT Sports. "He has incredible attributes to do that, but sometimes he plays too safe.

‘Pick that one out’ - Gonzalez thunders home late City strike to break Southampton hearts

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"The mentality of, 'I'm going to shoot, I'm going to score a goal', he has to play in that way. The moment he makes that step, we'll be playing to play regularly.

"But we're especially happy because, in the absence of Rodri for six or seven months, he has made an incredible step. He plays a lot of minutes, he helps us a lot and so that's why I'm really pleased."

When City's feat of becoming the first team to reach four straight FA Cup finals was put to him, Guardiola added: "Not even in the Roman Empire, right? Not even them, so it's phenomenal.

"It seems impossible, because you can always have a bad afternoon, but we've proven our consistency by being there again."

For a fleeting spell, Southampton dared to believe they could channel the spirit of their 1976 FA Cup winners and mark the 50th anniversary of that triumph with a return to the final.

With one eye on the challenge of overcoming Arsenal in the Premier League title race, City made eight changes from the side that won at Burnley in midweek and the lack of cohesion showed early on in a performance that carried an uncharacteristic edge of rust.

'Heartbreak in the Southampton end' - Doku's deflected strike claws Man City level in FA Cup clash

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While the likes of Phil Foden continued to look out of sorts, Gonzalez stood tall and served as a timely reminder of his qualities having recently been overlooked in favour of Nico O'Reilly in a midfield role during Rodri's continued absence.

Gonzalez told TNT Sports: "It was really special for me, as I'm not used to scoring these types of goals, and the winning goal. To do so here at Wembley, it's amazing.

"Obviously, every player wants to play as many minutes as possible, but the competition for places here is really hard. I accept the minutes that I have the chance to play, and I think this is the third or fourth time I've been here. It's the first time I've been able to start, so to score the winning goal is amazing.

"After Southampton scored, we still had confidence we could win as we've got so many fantastic players up front. We knew what we had to do, and we knew we had to keep bringing the ball close to the area, and hope that Jeremy [Doku], Rayan [Cherki] and others kept creating chances.

‘What a hit!’ - Azaz nets ‘goal of his life’ to spark pandemonium in Southampton end

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"That's what we did and we trusted ourselves, which was really important. We're used to playing with so much pressure, so if you go one goal down, we know we have to keep playing and focus on our next action. You could see that after we conceded the goal. We kept pushing."

Postecoglou: Saints scored too early

It could well have been so different. Just as a breakthrough for City began to feel inevitable, Southampton struck from nowhere. Azaz, collecting a pass from Kuryu Matsuki on the edge of the area, spun sharply and bent a superb effort beyond James Trafford.

Guardiola calls on Gonzalez to ‘believe more in himself’ after sensational Southampton strike

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It was a moment of genuine quality - and brief belief - but City responded almost immediately, extinguishing Southampton's hopes before they had time to take hold.

Speaking as a guest for TNT Sports, former Tottenham and Nottingham Forest head coach Ange Postecoglou joked: "Southampton scored too early. That's the problem when you face Man City.

"There's a drive inside Pep that very few people have. It's the reason he's above everyone else. He's created an environment in his pursuit of excellence. The FA Cup is usually harder, as it only needs one off-day in any knockout competition and you miss out. He's again shown why he's the best and that transfers through to his team.

"Manchester City are just relentless with the standards they push. Pep Guardiola was up for this game, there was no sense that this was just another semi-final. It's so hard to get to the top, but they've managed to sustain those levels for a number of years.

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"You see the genius of Pep in the way he praises Nico Gonzalez, but also says how he can sometimes play too safe. He's constantly sending messages to his players, on and off the field. He's got this thirst for success that doesn't seem to wane or diminish. Sometimes, you can take that for granted, but not with him. Pep's definitely been the major pillar of how City's success has been built over the past 10 years."

On Gonzalez's strike, Postecoglou added: "It was a Stevie G special. You know how important it is when you're faced with such a congested final third, sometimes it does take that bit of responsibility from one player. You know with City, they like to work it around the box, but Nico sees and sensed the opportunity, and he changed the course of the game."

Steven Gerrard was on co-commentary duty for TNT Sports and the former Liverpool midfielder was impressed by Gonzalez's ability to produce a winner fitting for the occasion.

"Take a bow. What a hit," he said. "It stays hit, and the net nearly comes off. You can put two or three goalkeepers in there and they're not saving them. I'd have been proud of that one."

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