FA Cup
United and City legends, Sir Alex Ferguson and Mike Summerbee to take match ball to field at FA Cu final
The Football Association has confirmed details of the pre-match and half-time entertainment at Wembley on Saturday.
The Football Association has confirmed that the match ball for Saturday’s all-Manchester FA Cup final at Wembley will be walked out by former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and City legend Mike Summerbee.
The two Manchester giants will go head-to-head in the first-ever all-Manchester final on Saturday afternoon, each looking to taste success in the final game of the domestic season.
United will have ambitions of winning their second trophy of the season while City will be hoping to keep their hopes of clinching a famous treble alive.
City have already scooped the Premier League title, beating Arsenal to the gong last month, and face Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul just seven days after facing United. The Reds, meanwhile, won the Carabao Cup in February to end their six-year trophy drought.Ferguson and Summerbee’s involvement in the pre-match pageantry will be just a small part of what will happen ahead of the 3pm kick-off, with His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, who is the President of the FA, leading the pre-match presentation. He will be joined by the national governing body’s Chair, Debbie Hewitt MBE, among others.
Ahead of the pre-match presentation, the pre-match show will consist of performances from Massed Bands of the Royal Corps of Army Music and the BBC Radio 1 DJ, producer, and host of Radio 1’s Soundsystem Party and 1Xtra’s Rave Show, Jeremiah Asiamah. The FA Cup final’s traditional pre-match hymn – Abide with Me – will also be played.
The military band, who will perform Abide with Me, will also contribute towards Asiamah’s bespoke DJ set that will feature City’s and United’s respective club anthems of Blue Moon and This is the One. Just before kick-off, the national anthem will be performed by the international soloist soprano Jasmine Faulkner, and a British Sign Language interpreter will provide translations of this and other moments during the afternoon.
At half-time, inspirational youngster Edward Simpson, who is attempting to raise £100,000 for brain tumour research following his own diagnosis, will take a penalty as part of his plan to take 100 penalty kicks in 100 different locations. Edward, who is also an avid United supporter, will take his Wembley penalty against United mascot Fred the Red.
Following the full-time whistle, in addition to the trophy being presented to the winner by His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, the tournament’s top scorer will be presented with the Golden Ball Award in partnership with Mitre. Wrexham striker Paul Mullin is currently the leading marksman in the FA Cup this season, bagging eight goals.
City ace Riyad Mahrez is his nearest challenger, so far scoring five goals in the competition this term, meaning he would need to repeat the hat-trick he scored against Sheffield United at the semi-final stage to match the former Cambridge United ace’s tally.
Arsenal survived a genuine scare in the FA Cup fifth round on Saturday as they edged past spirited third-tier Mansfield Town 2-1, with Eberechi Eze’s thunderbolt sending the Premier League leaders into the quarter-finals.
Noni Madueke gave Arsenal the lead going into halftime at Field Mill, but Will Evans equalised for Nigel Clough’s Mansfield before Eze scored in the 66th minute to ensure the top-flight side progressed to the last eight.
“Happy to score. I had the space and the opportunity to shoot. So I took it,” Eze told TNT Sports.
“It was a difficult environment to play in. But we did what we had to do and we are through to the next round, which is the important thing.”
Mikel Arteta named a much-changed side, starting teenagers Max Dowman and Marli Salmon, as Arsenal became the first Premier League side to start a competitive game with two players aged 16 or under in any competition.
However, Arteta’s changes nearly backfired as the hosts, feeding off a raucous home crowd, gave Arsenal a genuine fright with aggressive pressing and infectious energy that clearly unsettled the visitors.
“Before the game, the gaffer said, ‘Have a go. We were not expected to win the game, so have a go and enjoy it,” Mansfield forward Rhys Oates said.
“We created more chances than we thought we could, and we have given them a game.”
Dowman, Arsenal’s youngest-ever FA Cup player at 16, emerged as a lively attacking threat as the top-flight side gradually found their rhythm before Madueke broke the deadlock in the 41st minute.
Madueke, who had an initial shot saved, curled a powerful finish into the far corner to give Arsenal their 100th goal of the season in all competitions.
Clough brought on Evans for the second half, and the Welsh striker made an immediate impact, netting five minutes after coming on.
The 28-year-old wrong-footed a second-guessing Cristhian Mosquera before finishing past Kepa Arrizabalaga in Arsenal’s goal.
“It’s typical, isn’t it? For me to have a league goal drought and then come on for a half against Arsenal and have a goal against them,” Evans said.
Arsenal were rattled but recovered and found the winner when substitute Eze made space for himself and fired a powerful shot from the edge of the box to silence the crowd at Field Mill and keep Arsenal’s quadruple bid on track.
-Reuters
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Chelsea’s Alejandro Garnacho and Joao Pedro struck in extra time to secure a nervy 4–2 win over second‑tier Wrexham and reach the FA Cup quarter‑finals on Saturday as the Premier League giants escaped from the Racecourse Ground after a tough battle.
Garnacho volleyed home from close range in the 97th minute with such force that the ball ricocheted off the back stanchion to give Chelsea the lead for the first time on the night.
Wrexham — who lost George Dobson to a 93rd-minute red card — thought they had equalised deep into added time in the extra period when Lewis Brunt headed home, but he was offside. Pedro then sealed Chelsea’s win with a fine goal in the 125th minute.
Sam Smith had put the Championship side ahead in the 18th when he sprinted onto Callum Doyle’s long pass, took a touch and fired past Robert Sanchez. Chelsea equalised with a huge slice of luck when George Thomason’s attempt to clear Garnacho’s shot struck goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo and rolled in.
Wrexham went back in front after 78 minutes when Doyle diverted the ball past Sanchez after Ryan Longman fired it back into the area from a corner. But Josh Acheampong equalised soon after with a blistering shot into the roof of the net after Dobson slipped to send the game into extra time.
-Reuters
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Arsenal will visit League One Mansfield Town, while Manchester City travel to Newcastle United in a mouth-watering all-Premier League tie following the FA Cup fifth round draw on Monday.
Third-tier Mansfield stunned top-flight strugglers Burnley 2-1 at Turf Moor on Saturday and have been rewarded with a clash against 14-time winners and Premier League leaders Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola’s City face Newcastle in a repeat of one of this season’s League Cup semi-finals, while Premier League bottom side Wolverhampton Wanderers host Liverpool.
Brentford head to West Ham United after an own goal away to sixth-tier Macclesfield, who stunned holders Crystal Palace in the last round, giving them a 1-0 win on Monday.
Championship side Wrexham welcome eight-time winners Chelsea, while Fulham entertain Southampton and Leeds United host another second-tier side in Norwich City.
Sunderland face a second successive away trip after being drawn against Port Vale or Bristol City, whose fourth-round tie has been postponed until March 3 due to a waterlogged pitch.
FA Cup fifth round draw
- Fulham v Southampton
- Port Vale or Bristol City v Sunderland
- Newcastle United v Manchester City
- Leeds United v Norwich City
- Mansfield Town v Arsenal
- Wolverhampton Wanderers v Liverpool
- Wrexham v Chelsea
- West Ham United v Brentford
Matches to be played over the weekend of March 7–8
-Reuters
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