Manchester United saved their qualification for the FA Cup final on penalties, where Manchester City was already waiting, and avoided what would have been an absolute disaster. Coventry City, their eager challengers this afternoon at Wembley, recovered from a three-goal deficit and sent the match into extra time with a penalty scored in added time. The eighth-placed team in the English second division continued to compete in extra time as an equal and even saw the VAR annul a goal in the last breath of the match, but finally succumbed from the penalty spot (3-3, pen. 4-2 ). Rasmus Hojlund scored the final penalty, which will mean that the FA Cup title will be decided again in a Manchester derby, as happened the previous season, when Guardiola’s team won 2-1.
United began by imposing conditions against a still inhibited Coventry at Wembley, who resisted the initial attack until Scott McTominay opened the scoring for the red devils before half an hour of the game. The Scottish midfielder once again put on the goalscoring suit, as he already did in the quarterfinals against Liverpool, and stepped into the rival area decisively to finish a play that he himself had started 15 meters back.
The first half continued in the same way it began, being a United monologue in possession, with Bruno Fernandes managing the timing of the game. The Portuguese accelerated and paused his team’s attacks as he pleased, with the patience of someone who knew he had the advantage in a match that until then seemed like a formality. A premise that Harry Maguire reinforced in the last breath of the first act, with a great header on a corner kick that left goalkeeper Collins screwed.
Coventry got rid of the penalty in the second half and Mark Robins’ team took the field with a better face. However, a left-footed shot from Fernandes put the third place on the back of the last Championship survivor in the competition.
The 0-3 score lasted until the most fateful 25 minutes for United arrived. Striker Ellis Simms was the first to pierce Onana’s goal this afternoon, with a right-footed shot that made the fans jump sky blues. On the field, a timid Simms approached to take the ball out of the back of the net to take it to the center of the field, with a passivity that gave his goal a certain aroma of a consolation prize.
A few minutes later, that attitude changed when Wan-Bissaka deflected a shot from Callum O’Hare into the Onana goal. It was then that all of Coventry truly believed and came together. That momentum paid off and a handball in the area by Wan-Wissaka himself opened the door for Haji Wright to equalize with a penalty in the last breath of the match.
Extra time came in the form of an exchange of blows that seemed more fun for a Coventry that was already playing free of all pressure. A shot from Fernandes hit the crossbar that shook Collins’ goal and later another from Simms shook Onana’s goal. The madness was unleashed on the blue background when Victor Torp scored for Coventry in added time of extra time, but it evaporated suddenly when the VAR intervened to give Ten Hag’s team one more life, by invalidating the score for outside the goal. game. United did not let that lifeline escape and beat their inexperienced rival from the eleventh step. O’Hare and Wright missed for Coventry. Only Casemiro made a mistake for his team.
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