Much excitement and anticipation is in the air as the coveted semifinals of the FA Cup is upon us where Chelsea will challenge Manchester City and Leicester will face Southampton this weekend at Wimbledon.
The matchups are looking riveting following the FA Cup and Champions league quarterfinal matches.
The quarterfinals were wrapped up with Southampton taking a 3-0 victory over their hosts Bournemouth. Following a disappointing Premier League bout, the Saints had a great quarterfinal game which fans hope was an indication as to how they will be performing in the semifinals. In the past, Southampton won two FA Cup games facing Leicester City in 2006 and 2008.
Southampton will be playing their second semifinal match in four seasons.
Their contenders in the semifinals, Leicester City also caused the blight of Manchester United in the quarterfinals with a 3-1 victory which broke the hearts of many Man. Utd’s fans. Their matchup against Southampton is especially enticing one since they desecrated the Saints 9-0 in the Premier League last season. Leicester would also be defending its 2016 FA Cup championship.
We’ll just have to see if Leicester will defend their past victories, or if Southampton will make it to the finals with the sweet taste of revenge.
The second team to qualify for the semis were the 2019 champions, Manchester City. They are still coming down from a high after their 4-2 aggregate win over Borussia Dortmund to make it to the Champions League semifinals. However, their not-so-comfortable 2-0 defeat over Everton in the quarterfinals might be a cause for concern for Guardiola’s men. The pressure is definitely on as they face the seemingly fearless Chelsea on Saturday.
The rejuvenated Chelsea has been steadily and admirably going through the ranks this season. They managed to sure a place in both the FA Cup and Champions League semifinals with a hard defeat over Sheffield United in the FA Cup quarterfinals. They had a bit of a struggle to defeat Porto in the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, but they still came out aggregate victors.
City defeated Chelsea 3-1 in January at Stamford Bridge, but that was under the guidance of Frank Lampard. Chelsea’s fortune has been something akin to set in the stars since Tuchel took over. They have been to the FA Cup’s finals three times in the last four seasons, but if they emerge victorious over Manchester, Tuchel would be killing two birds with one stone. He would finally defeat Guardiola, and he would be the first ever German coach to make it to the finals.
The clashes this weekend will also mark the first time in nearly a year that spectators could be present in the stands. It will be one of the proposed pilot events to test the return of large crowds to venues in the United Kingdom.
Will the teams be able to withstand the heat of their opponents and on-site spectators to propel towards the finals?
The much anticipated semifinals are definitely expected be for the books.
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