Chelsea 1-0 Manchester City: 5 hits and flops | FA Cup 2021
Chelsea and Manchester City went head-to-head at Wembley as a spot in the FA Cup final was up for grabs for one of the two English giants. Since Thomas Tuchel's arrival, the Blues have lost just twice in 18 games and the German boss continued with that splendid run of form. This was Tuchel's first win over Pep Guardiola in his managerial career.
It was a better start for Chelsea, who targeted Cancelo's defensive fragility on the left flank. The deadlock was broken in the 55th minute when Zack Steffen got caught in two minds and Hakim Ziyech scored from Timo Werner's perfect pass.
Pep's side hardly created any opportunities until the hour mark and De Bruyne's injury did not help the Citizens. City tried and created a few half-chances in the last half hour but that rock-solid Chelsea defense would just not budge.
Thomas Tuchel's side will return to Wembley next month to face either Leicester City or Southampton on May 15th. Keeping all that in mind, let us take a look at the hits and flops from this game.
#5 HIT: Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea)
First up we have the match-winner Hakim Ziyech. The summer recruit hasn't had the best of starts in Chelsea colors but he did have a splendid game against Manchester City. Ziyech scored inside five minutes but the goal was rightly ruled out for an offside call.
Ten minutes into the second half. Mount played a flawless through ball to put Timo Werner through, who set it up perfectly for Ziyech to tap it home.Ziyech has now scored in the quarter-final and the semi-final of the FA Cup.
Chelsea fed off the high line and Hakim Ziyech was involved in most of Chelsea's attacks. The Moroccan was subbed after 70 minutes.
#4 FLOP: Ferran Torres (Manchester City)
It can be blamed on the lack of service, but Ferran Torres was anonymous in the FA Cup semi-final. The Spaniard had 16 touches in the 64 minutes he was on the pitch and he failed to create any chance or take a shot in that time.
Ferran boasts fantastic stats this season with 15 goals and 3 assists in 18 starts for club and country. It was a huge opportunity for the winger to give a lively performance and win an important game for his new club. Much more was expected from the 21-year old, considering he scored against Leeds last weekend and got a full rest mid-week.