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• Man City players will give everything to win FA Cup final – Pep Guardiola

  Pep Guardiola has promised Manchester City fans his side will “give everything” to beat rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final.

  The neighbouring clubs clash in the competition’s Wembley showpiece for the first time as the domestic season reaches a mouth-watering climax on Saturday.

  There is plenty of incentive for City as they look to claim the second leg of the treble and move a step closer to matching United’s 1999 haul of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League trophies.

  Yet even just taking the game in isolation, City manager Guardiola is well aware of how much simply beating United in a major final – after plenty of suffering at their hands in the past – would mean to supporters.

  With that in mind, and his players fully focused, Guardiola has urged fans to savour the occasion.

  He said: “I will ask to our fans, behave properly first and, secondly, go there to enjoy an incredible event, knowing the players will give everything to beat Man United.

  “The consequences and the result, who knows it? I don’t know it. (United manager) Erik ten Hag doesn’t know it.

  “It’s a football game. Enjoy the moment and enjoy next week to prepare for the (Champions League) final, to dream of seeing the team. It’s the best way.

  “You have to understand anything can happen but we are going to do everything to beat United.

  “I understand completely for City fans, who were in the shadow for decades behind United.

  “We’ll try to do the best game as possible. So I would say have fun, enjoy the right portion of beers before the game and, that’s all. Enjoy it.”

  The fact City are bidding for the treble could also give United extra motivation, however, as they not only look for a derby cup triumph but to preserve the uniqueness of their club’s own achievement 24 years ago.

  “I could understand that, it belongs to them,” said Guardiola. “That’s normal. Sport is like that. It’s completely understandable.

  “But it’s a football game. Who will be better will win.”

  After an intensive schedule in the closing weeks of the Premier League season, City have had a full week to prepare of the fixture.

  Guardiola even had time to attend a Sir Elton John concert in Manchester while some of the players went to watch Coldplay at the Etihad Stadium.

  The City boss has no doubt the mental break has done his players good.

  He said: “When you have these events in this city – and one of the legends, Sir Elton John – you have to use them.

  “They’ve trained really good these last two training sessions. There’s a good mood in the locker room and on the pitch.

  “We know what we are playing for. I don’t have to tell them. It is the final of the FA Cup against United, the chance to add another trophy. This is the mentality we have right now.”

• Erik ten Hag says ending City’s treble charge is no extra motivation for United

  

  Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag says the chance to stop Manchester City’s treble charge provides no extra motivation heading into the FA Cup final.

  The eyes of the footballing world will be on Wembley on Saturday afternoon for the first-ever all-Manchester cup final.

  United head to the capital looking to end a promising first season under Ten Hag by winning both domestic cups in the same campaign for the first time.

  Neighbours City already have the Premier League title under their belt and are looking to lift the FA Cup a week before heading to Istanbul to take on Inter Milan in the Champions League final.

  Lifting both of those trophies would see Pep Guardiola’s men join Sir Alex Ferguson’s 1999 treble heroes as the only English sides to achieve the feat – something United supporters are desperate to stop.

  “I know what is the thinking from the fans,” Ten Hag said. “But what we want is to restore Manchester United by winning trophies.

  “So, on Saturday we have an opportunity to win a trophy and we don’t want to be distracted by anything.

  “If it’s important for the fans then it’s important for us, so we will give everything to win the cup.”

  Asked why he would not use the chance to extinguish City’s treble hopes as extra motivation at Wembley, Ten Hag said: “Because it is not necessary.

  “That will not give more motivation to the team because their motivation is already enough. That can’t be more.

  “They want to win the cup and they have an opportunity. They want to set a crown on the season, so what do you need more? What is more motivation?”

  This will be the Manchester clubs’ third meeting of the season, with City winning 6-3 in October before United triumphed 2-1 at Old Trafford in January.

  Those were the first times that Ten Hag and Guardiola have faced each other in management but their relationship goes back a decade.

  The Dutchman spent two years as Bayern Munich II head coach as the now City boss coached the perennial Bundesliga champions’ senior side.

  Asked what makes Guardiola so special, Ten Hag said: “Oh, I don’t tell! It’s obvious we have seen what he is doing, he’s doing a brilliant job.

  “What he can do is he can construct not only winning teams but also winning in a very attractive way, so that is why I think we all admire him so.”

  Ten Hag says winger Antony is expected to miss the final and United confirmed earlier this week Anthony Martial would be absent due to a muscular tear.

  The 27-year-old’s future is unclear after an injury-hit season but it appears the recovery time from this issue may hamper any chances of moving him on.

  “It’s going to be a long one but how long we don’t know,” Ten Hag said. “We have to do more assessment.”

• James Vincent: It’s taken years to realise the importance of my cup-winning goal

  James Vincent admits he has only recently started to grasp the full magnitude of his Scottish Cup-winning strike for Inverness eight years ago.

  The 33-year-old midfielder scored the biggest goal in Caley Thistle’s history when he burst forward from his auxiliary role at right-back to tap home in the 86th minute as his 10-man team overcame a late flurry from Falkirk to claim the old trophy in 2015.

  But Vincent, who returned for a second spell with Inverness between 2019 and 2021, admits it took him some time to fully appreciate the importance of what he had accomplished.

  “It really is the sort of thing you grow up dreaming of, scoring a late winner in a cup final,” Vincent told the PA news agency on the eve of his old side’s Scottish Cup final showdown with Celtic.

  “It’s probably something that has become heightened over the years, partly by doing interviews like this. At the time I thought it was just another game to be brutally honest.

  “I didn’t quite understand how it affected the lives of fans and staff. It’s only when you’re still getting messages from fans about the cup final all these years later that you understand how it impacted other people and that it was the biggest moment for the club they support.

  “It’s probably something that I’ve come to realise over the years was such a big occasion and I’m so happy that I was part of it.”

  Vincent was sent on by manager John Hughes as a 72nd-minute substitute to try and help Inverness – who were in the Premiership at the time – maintain control at a time when they led their second-tier opponents 1-0.

  A red card for Caley Thistle defender Carl Tremarco just three minutes later, however, changed the whole dynamic of the match and Falkirk equalised with 10 minutes left.

  Just as the Bairns looked set to turn the screw, the Highlanders broke away and won it when Vincent followed up to tap in the rebound after attacker Marley Watkins had surged from his own half and forced a save out of Jamie MacDonald.

  “Circumstances on the day were crazy,” recalled Vincent. “We had ups and downs, a red card, people playing out of position, but I just took a bit of a risk towards the end and fortunately it paid off.

  “When I came on, it was still 11 v 11 but Falkirk were getting a bit of a foothold. I went on for Ryan Christie to play in an advanced midfielder position but within three minutes we were down to 10 men and I got moved to right-back.

  “John Hughes liked utilising us in different positions, which I felt was a strength of ours. The remit from there was to shut up shop, get to extra time and see if we could take it to penalties but I had the chance to break forward and I took it.

  “A lot of the boys had played the majority of the game and were tired, especially when we were down to 10 men, but I had a bit of freshness about me and I was on the pitch so I just thought ‘I’ll have a go’. You don’t get to play in many occasions like that and I just took a gamble and kept going.

  “I got myself ahead of the midfield line and it was only Marley up top and he managed to brush off a defender and get a shot away. I still think he should have passed to me but he had a shot and I was in the right place at the right time.

  “Even though Falkirk were in the Championship, they had a really good squad and had been on the cusp of promotion for a couple of years. We were the favourites going into it but the tide turned when we had Carl sent off and we probably became the underdogs.

  “It was tough, it was backs-against-the-wall at times, but we had a great attitude about us. I don’t think anybody expected us to finish the game the way we did.”

  Vincent will be watching his former colleagues from his Glossop home on Saturday, hoping he will be joined in Inverness folklore by a new cup final-winning hero.

  “It’s really nice to see Aaron Doran and Danny Devine trying to do it again,” he said of the two remaining members of the 2015 squad. “They’re the two boys, along with Billy McKay who I’m still really close to and still talk to quite regularly.

  “Those lads will be really valuable to Inverness because they’ve got the experience. I think they’ve got a nice blend of younger and more experienced player.

  “I’ll be watching on television as a fan and I’d love to see them have a go at Celtic and see where it takes them. If they do that and give it their all, nobody will moan regardless of the score.”