Manager Pep Guardiola praises Manchester City's FA Cup victory

In the 2026 FA Cup final, Manchester City defeated Chelsea 1-0 thanks to a backheel goal by Antoine Semenio in the 71st minute.

This is Pep Guardiola's third FA Cup title during his tenure as manager of Manchester City, and his 20th major trophy in his managerial career.

After the match, Guardiola highly praised the team's performance, focusing on the details of the game and the players' form. In a post-match interview, he said, "We are very happy. This trophy is really cool and has a deep tradition."

“Winning the game feels special, but I think we played better last season against Crystal Palace and two seasons ago against Manchester United than we did today. However, in these kinds of finals, the difference between the winner and loser is often very small.”

Guardiola raved about Semenho, the hero of the winning goal: "Since joining in January, Antoine has shown a keen sense of goal-scoring ability. He can play in all three attacking positions, and that goal was crucial. Normally he would choose to cross to Herring, but he made an excellent individual choice and scored a beautiful goal."

Despite winning the title, Guardiola revealed that the team would not hold any celebrations immediately: "There will be no celebrations today, not even a beer. We will have an official title parade in Manchester next Monday."

"Chelsea had seven days to prepare for this final, while we spent six hours just on the train yesterday. Transportation here is a problem. But I think the players performed very well and showed a stable mentality."

This final was also the farewell match for two veteran players, Bernardo Silva and John Stones, at Manchester City's Wembley Stadium, as both will leave the club this summer.

Guardiola expressed his deep emotion, saying, "It would be unfair to judge their dedication here solely based on whether they won a trophy today. They have always been incredible, and I am very grateful to them for representing this club in the best way possible. Bernardo is like a perpetual motion machine, and he proved that once again today."

Image source: Internet