Manchester City will be looking to avoid breaking an unwanted losing FA Cup semi-final record when they face Sheffield United at Wembley Stadium on Saturday.
The Citizens enter the contest in the capital in buoyant mood after progressing to the Champions League semi-finals courtesy of a 4-1 aggregate victory over Bayern Munich, playing out a 1-1 second-leg draw in Germany on Wednesday.
Pep Guardiola's side have put together an 15-game unbeaten run in all competitions and will be regarded as firm favourites to come out on top against their Championship counterparts this weekend.
Man City have won all four FA Cup matches this season by an aggregate score of 14-0, progressing past Chelsea, Arsenal, Bristol City and Burnley, with a thumping 6-0 quarter-final triumph over the latter last month setting up their semi-final clash with Sheffield United.
The Citizens are featuring in the final four of the FA Cup for the sixth time in the last seven seasons and for the fifth successive campaign, but their recent record at this stage of the competition does not bode well for Guardiola and co.
© Reuters
The reigning Premier League champions have lost four of their last five matches in the FA Cup semi-finals, including each of their last three against Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool.
Defeat on Saturday against Paul Heckingbottom's side would see City become the first team in FA Cup history to suffer defeat at the semi-final stage in four consecutive seasons.
City have lost each of their last four FA Cup meetings with Sheffield United, albeit three of those taking place before the Second World War, but their record in recent years against lower-league opposition will provide plenty of conference for the Citizens heading into Saturday.
Since a 1-0 FA Cup fourth-round defeat to Wigan Athletic in February 2018, City have won each of their last 21 domestic cup ties against sides from lower divisions, scoring 78 goals and conceding only 11 in the process.
© Reuters
Guardiola believes that his City side will face an "extremely difficult" test against a Sheffield United side who are on the verge of promotion to the Championship and have already beaten Premier League opposition in the form of Tottenham Hotspur in this season's FA Cup.
"[Sheffield United] are one game away from Premier League promotion and it will be an extremely difficult game," Guardiola told reporters at a press conference on Friday.
"[Their style is] quite similar the way they played under Chris Wilder. Incredible first season. A lot of patterns. For the quality of the set pieces, build up and building the channels.
"They are so aggressive in the duals. This is the feeling I have. We need to be there at 4:45pm to deserve to be in the final."
Man City will be without defender Nathan Ake due to a hamstring injury, but Phil Foden – who has scored three goals in three FA Cup games this season – is available for selection after recovering from appendix surgery.
No Data Analysis info
