Following their FA Cup victory over Sheffield United, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola urged Manchester United supporters not to be alarmed as the Premier League leaders' quest for a treble draws nearer.
Riyad Mahrez's hat-trick helped City defeat Sheffield United with ease.
As United is scheduled to play Brighton at Wembley tomorrow, they will now know they have a spot in the championship game.
Pep Guardiola's team is now in the Champions League semifinals and has a tantalizing match versus Real Madrid on the horizon. Man City currently trail the Gunner by five points with two games remaining. On Wednesday, they also play host to the North London team at the Etihad.
The only English club to have won the FA Cup, Champions League, and Premier League simultaneously is Manchester United, and Guardiola's team would become the first to do it. To this day, United's historic treble victory in 1999 stands as the Premier League team's pinnacle achievement.
After City's victory over Sheffield, Guardiola addressed the media and teased United supporters about the possibility of The Sky Blues winning on all three fronts.
The Spaniard said, “They [Man United] don’t have to be scared, we are neighbours.”
“Neighbours are always nice to each other.”
Guardiola added, “I said yesterday we are far away, the treble and this discussion for a funny moment is okay.”
Fortunately for United, they have the opportunity to prevent City from completing the treble as things stand.
They will have a chance to prevent City from winning the FA Cup and, in doing so, thwart aspirations to accomplish a treble if they complete their task against Brighton to advance to the finals. The stakes are quite high when legacy is involved.
Erik Ten Hag defends team rotation policy
At Manchester United, Erik ten Hag has defended his team's lack of rotation by asserting that its members are capable of participating in a sizable number of games throughout the course of a season.
Today's FA Cup semifinal match between United and Brighton will be their 53rd game of the season, although Ten Hag's team has been severely hampered by injuries lately.
In the lopsided loss to Sevilla in the second leg of the Europa League quarterfinal on Thursday, there was also a sense that their fatigue was catching up with them, but Ten Hag would not accept it as an explanation for their "unacceptable" performance.
Ten Hag hasn't always rotated as much as expected, notably after making seven changes in the defeat to Real Sociedad in September. Four United players have already played more than 3,000 minutes this season, with Casemiro falling just nine minutes shy of reaching that milestone.
The Dutchman, however, maintains that he has made changes and has increased the pressure on his players to handle the burden that is expected of them while also bringing up the issue of his squad's lack of depth.
“I think also we rotate during the whole season, but this season is crazy with the World Cup in between, and many of our players were present there," said Ten Hag.
"Then we played an extra round in the Europa League, so we maybe played the most games of all teams across Europe. But I think also players are to a certain point capable and we have players in the squad who can really have the load of a lot of number of games."
"So it’s difficult to say, and if the squad is so strong that you have in every position double the same quality ... but yeah we have to acknowledge that especially in the frontline we had problems during the whole season because we didn’t always have the numbers there, so then you are forced to make decisions because you have to win the game, game by game."
For United, injuries have been getting worse recently, but there have been some persistent problems all season. Jadon Sancho and Christian Eriksen have each missed three months of the current campaign. This season, Anthony Martial has been out for 27 games, and Casemiro has been suspended for eight games.
"I’ve said before one of the things that we didn’t have is the opportunity so often to play the same team," said Ten Hag
"In the midfield department but also other lines, the frontline for instance; it hasn’t often played the same, because of injuries and suspensions. So we were not in a position to do that."
"So how often you can line up the same, the routine gets in. But also when you play a lot of games, and the load is getting higher, yeah you need to rotate because you have to keep the players fit and fresh."
"Then you look to the next game and you have to take decisions in tactical approach or in personnel approach, and when you miss players you have to find solutions and you look what is the best solution for the moment."
"You have to look short term but also, of course, in the longer term as well. In this moment when you play a semi-final you only have one opportunity [to win], so you’re looking for the best team in that moment."
Danny Welbeck makes Mac Allister's claim ahead of Emirates FA Cup showdown at Wembley stadium
As the Brighton star gets ready for the FA Cup semifinal matchup against Manchester United, Danny Welbeck has said that playing against his old team is no longer "weird."
During his stint at Old Trafford, the 32-year-old made 142 appearances for the Reds, including 29 goals and 21 assists. In September 2014, he departed the team and joined Premier League rival Arsenal.
Welbeck, who has played for Brighton and scored four goals against Manchester United in his career, has made an impact for the Seagulls thus far this season. He has contributed to eight goals for Roberto De Zerbi's team. On Sunday afternoon at Wembley, the attacker is anticipated to have the ball first against the Reds.
"I’ve played games against United multiple times now, and it’s now not as weird as it once was," said Welbeck. "It was worse when I went to Old Trafford. You go there into the away dressing room and you’re warming up on a different side of the pitch, and walking out on the other side.
"It’s just little weird things like that, because you’re so used to going to a certain place. And early on I was playing against players I’ve been with previously."
Then, according to Danny Welbeck, Brighton players who have played in big games could help the Seagulls defeat United and advance to the FA Cup final.
"We have players who have won trophies and the latest one is Alexis (Mac Allister) who has won the World Cup," he continued.
"So, to have players like that in the team it’s always massive just to pass on – it might be something small but it might be key – advice and little things like that. It goes a long way"
Last weekend, the striker scored against Chelsea after coming off the bench, giving De Zerbi's team a 2-1 victory against the London team. This was the striker's third goal in eight games.
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