DE BRUYNE BENCHED FOR CUP SEMIS

Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne was on the bench for the whole of the FA Cup semifinal clash with Liverpool at the iconic Wembley Stadium. Kevin De Bruyne watched from the bench as Manchester City were knocked out of the FA Cup final thanks to the 3-2 loss to the Reds.

English champions Manchester City came into the game with the opportunity to match the feat achieved by city rivals Manchester United during the 1998/99 season by winning the treble namely the Premier League title, the Champions League title and the FA Cup title. Kevin De Bruyne and his City teammates won’t be able to achieve the treble after losing to Liverpool in the last four of the FA Cup. The Citizens can still win two trophies this season as they are in the semifinals of the Champions League where they will face 13-time champions Real Madrid and are also at the Premier League summit with seven games remaining. Manchester City have a one-point lead over Liverpool with seven matches to go for both teams.

 

For the FA Cup semifinal clash at the weekend, Liverpool blew Manchester City away in the first half thanks to the early goal from French defender Ibrahima Konate and a brace from 2021 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) winner Sadio Mane. Konate gave the Reds the lead in the ninth minute before Mane scored the first of his two goals eight minutes later to double the advantage for his team. Mane was able to pounce on the error from Zach Steffen in the  Manchester City goal for the first of the brace scored by the Senegalese international. On the stroke of halftime, Mane added his second goal off the pass from Spanish midfielder Thiago Alcantara to ensure that Liverpool went into the break with a 3-0 scoreline. Jack Grealish and substitute Riyad Mahrez scored for City in the second half, but it was not enough to force extra time.

 

Manchester City will now focus on their home game against Brighton and Hove Albion in the league on Wednesday after their FA Cup elimination.