Manchester City Vs Liverpool FA Cup Semi-Final prediction 21/22

Manchester City and Liverpool both booked their place in the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League in midweek and are now about to go head to head for the second time in a week.

Their previous match provided entertainment and drama as the match ended in a 2-2 draw to leave their battle for the title up in the air, and now they play in the FA Cup semi-final with another trophy up for grabs. 

Man City vs Liverpool - FA Cup Semi-Final Match Preview:

(Sourced from ManchesterEveningNews - photo taken by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)

Manchester City travelled to Madrid in midweek for the second leg of their tie against Atletico de Madrid. They travelled with a narrow 1-0 aggregate score with all to play for at the magnificent Wanda Metropolitano. For the majority of the game, Man City were under the cosh by the relentless Atletico Madrid fans and supporters as they pushed for an equaliser in the tie. Near the conclusion of the game, tempers were beginning to boil on both teams but City kept their cool and managed to hold Atletico to a scoreless draw on the night and progress into the Semi-Finals where the current Spanish league leaders, Real Madrid, await them. 

Their last premier league fixture was none other than Liverpool in what was labelled as the 'title decider' by many watching. Both teams managed to produce entertainment and drama and showcased why they are the two best English teams in the last 5-6 years. City took the lead twice in the game, but Liverpool's resilience and constant attacking threat helped them get back into the game twice. Although Manchester City created the better chances to win the match and gain a 4 point lead at the top. 

Swindon, Fulham, Peterborough and Southampton have all been breezed past by City in this year's FA Cup campaign. Manchester City has played 4 matches and scored 14 goals and only conceded 3 which shows their intent to win the FA cup which could only be their second FA cup triumph in Pep Guardiola's 6 years at Manchester City. 

Liverpool had the second leg of their Quarter-final tie against Benfica at home and had already gained a 3-1 advantage from the first leg. Therefore, Jurgen Klopp decided to rest the majority of his first XI with the likes of Trent, Van Djik, Salah and Mane on the bench for their European showdown with Benfica. Despite leading the game 3-1 by the 65th minute, Benfica made life difficult for Liverpool and managed to get the score to 3-3 on the night with two late goals. Although, Benfica had two goals, rightly, disallowed earlier in the match which shows on another day the wholesale changes made by Klopp could have been costly. Nevertheless, they progressed to the semi-finals where the surprise of the season, Villareal awaits.

Like Manchester City, Liverpool were relatively comfortable in their FA Cup campaign. However, that was until their quarter-final match away at Nottingham Forest where an upset looked like a likely outcome. Many would agree that if Nottingham Forest had better finishing on the day, they would be in a FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City. Once again Liverpool's resilience and constant attacking threat helped them advance via a slender 1-0 victory. Through their 4 matches, LFC conceded 3 and scored 10 goals, like City, showing their ambition to win the FA Cup for the first time since 2006.

Head to Head (h2h):

Predicted Lineups

Manchester City XI: Ederson; Cancelo, Stones, Laporte, Ake; Silva, Rodri, Gundogan; Mahrez, Sterling, Jesus

In their midweek clash with Atletico, City lost two vital players to injury - Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne. Kyle Walker twisted his ankle while challenging for a ball while the latter was reported to be in the need of stitches in his calves. Guardiola has claimed that these injury issues are a huge problem for them thus like at the Wanda Metropolitano, Ake and Sterling could replace Walker and De Bruyne in the lineup. While Jesus replaces Foden from midweek due to the head injury the latter received in the match against Atletico.

Ruben Dias was also back from his injury and made the bench for their Champions League clash, although it was reported that he hasn't had a lot of training sessions, hence he will likely be on the bench once more to ensure perfect match fitness for future matches.

Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Mane, Jota

Liverpool in their midweek clash managed to rest the majority of their key players like Van Djik, Trent and Robertson who were unused subs. Salah, Fabinho and Thiago came on for the last 30 minutes to ensure their quarter-final tie against Benfica does not slip away from them. Therefore Liverpool should be able to play their strongest XI for their FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool.

Although, there have been rumours about a knock for Diogo Jota for which he was substituted against Benfica. But Jurgen Klopp has said that "Diogo, good chance he will be alright but we need to have a closer look tomorrow. That's it." Hence, I suspect that it was not a serious injury and Jota will start against City. However, I doubt he will last the full match and thus, Luis Diaz or Firmino may have an important role to play in this semi-final. 

Ones to Watch

Manchester City

Bernardo Silva has been a crucial player in midfield for Manchester City. His dribbling and passing ability will be greatly needed in the likely absence of Kevin De Bruyne. Sterling's pace against Liverpool's high defensive line will also provide its uses whenever City encounter a counter-attacking scenario. Joao Caneclo's defensive and attacking abilities in wide positions for City will be crucial as he will most likely be marking Sadio Mane and Robertson who both love attacking. Hence there could be space for Cancelo to attack as well.

However, Ake will most likely replace Walker and will most likely play at LB for Manchester City. Ake has not been a regular starter for City and will be up against Mohammed Salah who will always be a threat in or out of form. Thus, I suspect Ake may be the weak link in the City defence and may concede a few fouls and get himself a yellow card during the match. I also suspect Bernardo Silva to get booked in this game as the last two times the teams have met he has been yellow carded.

Overall I expect Man City to have fewer bookings than Liverpool, around 1/2 in the FA Cup semi-final. While Bernardo Silva, Sterling and Cancelo potentially being the best performers for Manchester City.

Liverpool

Liverpool have a lot of consistent performers in Van Djik and Mo Salah. Although Salah, despite getting an assist in the previous match against City, was relatively quiet for the 90 minutes. Although he may or may not perform well, I expect Salah to have a goal involvement or 2 in their FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City. Diogo Jota also has a knack for scoring in big games for Liverpool as seen in the previous game against City. Trent Alexander-Arnold will be crucial for Liverpool on the right flank with his sensational passing and crossing ability. Although defensively he may struggle against Sterling's pace and dribbling.

Thus, I expect Trent to be booked in the FA Cup semi-final tie as his defensive abilities are under fire by many football fans across the world. Fabinho in the last fixture was rather lucky not to be sent off for a poor tackle on Bernardo Silva which only warranted him a yellow card. Furthermore, like Silva for Man City, Fabinho has been booked in both previous matches against Manchester City. I also suspect Thiago to be booked, potentially stopping a Manchester City counter-attack.

Overall I expect Liverpool to have more bookings than City, around 2/3 in the match. While I expect Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jota to be the best performers for Liverpool. I can see Salah having a goal involvement and possibly 2 shots on target for Liverpool as well but he may not be an outstanding performer.

Prediction

Both matches in the Premier League have ended in a 2-2 draw with City looking the better and creating the better chances in order to win the game. Although according to reports Man City may not have a full-strength XI with Walker and De Bruyne potentially unavailable. While Liverpool, who only have Jota as a small doubt, will probably have their full strength XI. History favours a city win, while potential lineups favour a Liverpool triumph. 

Both teams have been world-class for half a decade and are regarded as the top two teams in England and potentially world football as of right now. Whenever these two play there are always goals and drama, thus I expect that 120 minutes of football may be required for today's FA Cup semi-final with either team scoring a goal to win it in extra time.

(Published at 12:00pm on 16/04/22)