Pep Guardiola has long insisted that it was impossible for Manchester City to win the quadruple this season, and while improbable would have been a more appropriate description of their chances, the Spaniard's theory proved correct on Monday night as Wigan Athletic pulled off one of the most famous FA Cup upsets in recent memory. City had to contend with the dismissal of Fabian Delph just before half time but Guardiola had opted to select many of his first-team stars and if truth be told, they were just not good enough on the night to deny the League One side another cup triumph over their more illustrious North-West rivals. However, at the end of the week, City have an opportunity to get a trophy in the cabinet as they take on Arsenal in the EFL Cup final at Wembley Stadium.
People like a betting site that will get you your money fast and that will be the case as far as getting a return on the number of trophies that City will win this season. Betting odds on the quadruple have been shortening throughout the season but those who bet on the treble at the start of the campaign would have gotten value for their money, and with the Premier League having effectively already being wrapped up, many punters - probably located in and around the Manchester area - are looking at odds of anywhere between 25/1 and 40/1 for City to win the EFL Cup and Champions League. The question is, can they recover - more so mentally than physically - in time for the showdown in North London?
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On the face of it, you have to say yes. Guardiola would not have enjoyed seeing his players play and chase the ball down with 10 men in the second half and the plan would not have been for Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan and Sergio Aguero to play the full 90 minutes at the DW Stadium. However, Ederson, Nicolas Otamendi and Raheem Sterling all got much-needed time out of the starting lineup and even Oleksandr Zinchenko will be fresh to replace the suspended Delph at left-back. Leroy Sane got another 45 minutes under his belt as part of his recovery from ankle ligament damage and Kevin De Bruyne played for just half an hour. All in all, many of the big-hitters should be fresh for the meeting with Arsenal, who do not play the second leg of their Europa League last-32 tie with Ostersunds FK until Thursday night.
From a mental perspective, this is not the first time that City have suffered a defeat this season, and with a mix-and-match side. Back in December, Shakhtar Donetsk ran out 2-1 winners in the Ukraine, but City responded with three victories in the space of a week - against Manchester United, Swansea City and Tottenham Hotspur respectively. The setback at Liverpool was followed by six victories from their next seven matches, a period which came to an end on Monday evening. City are not used to failure, but they do know how to respond and if anything, Guardiola and his squad will relish the chance to take part in a match of high importance immediately after succumbing in such circumstances.
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Guardiola may also find extra motivation in looking for Wembley redemption as well. Last April, City let a one-goal lead slip against Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-finals, eventually losing out 2-1 to an extra-time goal from Alexis Sanchez. It prevented Guardiola from getting a chance to win his first trophy for City but 10 months on from that disappointment, the Spaniard gets that opportunity again and will be determined to break his duck. Do not be surprised to see City prevail in a high-scoring encounter, too. There has not been a clean sheet in this fixture since January 2015 - a period which has included six matches involving 21 goals.
