We’re down to the final four in the FA Cup.
The semifinals of one of the world’s oldest sporting competitions take place this weekend, with all four teams eyeing a chance to advance to the final on June 3 at London’s Wembley Stadium
Premier League giants Manchester City takes on Sheffield United of the English Championship (second division) on Saturday (11:45 a.m. ET), while top-flight sides Manchester United and Brighton & Hove Albion meet on Sunday (11:30 a.m. ET). Both matches are at Wembley Stadium.
Here’s what you need to know:
Single-elimination format
Both semifinal matches are single elimination and not two-legged, home-and-away affairs. If a team loses, they’re eliminated.
In previous rounds, if a game was tied after 90 minutes of regulation time, a replay match was scheduled for a later date to determine who moved on.
But there are no replays in this round. If a game is tied after 90 minutes, it goes to extra time and then a penalty shootout (if necessary) to determine the winner.
How the teams got here
Sheffield United has won the FA Cup four times – all of them before 1925 – and haven’t made it this far in the tournament since 2014. Sheffield is also the first team outside of the Premier League to reach the semifinals since Reading in 2014-15.
Managed by Paul Heckingbottom, the Blades entered the FA Cup in the third round when they defeated Championship rivals Millwall. They needed a replay in the next round to get past fifth-division outfit Wrexham, owned by Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds, and then disposed of Premier League club Tottenham in the fifth round and fellow Championship side Blackburn Rovers in the quarter-finals.
Manchester City has breezed through the competition since entering at the third round, posting clean-sheet wins over Chelsea, Arsenal, Bristol City and Burnley. Likewise, Manchester United has eased through the competition since the third round with a series of 3-1 victories against Everton, Reading, West Ham United and Fulham.
Brighton’s path to the semifinals has also been pretty straight forward, as the Seagulls have bested Middlesbrough, defending champions Liverpool, Stoke City and Grimsby Town in quick succession.
Manchester City vs. Sheffield United
On paper, this would appear to be a major mismatch. Manchester City sits second in the Premier League table and have also reached the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League. They also have the world’s top goal scorer in Erling Haaland at its disposal – the Norwegian has 48 goals in all competitions this season, including three in the FA Cup.
But Sheffield United, currently in second place in the Championship, has history on its side. The Blades have won all four of their previous FA Cup matches against Manchester City, most recently a 2-1 decision in the fourth round in 2008.
At the same time, Manchester City is set to play in the FA Cup semifinals for a fifth consecutive season, and for the sixth time in seven years. Getting over the hump has proven to be difficult for the Blues — they’ve lost four times in the last five years, and they run the risk of becoming the first Premier League club to lose four FA Cup semifinals in a row.
However, the Blues have won their last 21 domestic cup games against lower-division clubs (outscoring their opponents by a combined 78-11) since suffering a 1-0 loss to Wigan in 2008 in the FA Cup.
If Manchester City earns a clean sheet win on Saturday, it would become the first team to reach the FA Cup final without conceding a goal since Everton in 1965-66.
Also, Premier League teams have won the previous 13 FA Cup semifinals versus lower-division clubs since Sunderland defeated Norwich City in 1992.
Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Manchester United
Sitting a distant third in the Premier League table and having been eliminated from the UEFA Europa League on Thursday, Manchester United is attempting to add the FA Cup to its trophy case this season after winning the League Cup back in February.
If Man United beats Brighton on Sunday, it will advance to the FA Cup final for the 21st time, tying Arsenal for the all-time record. Having already won the League Cup, the Red Devils are aiming to advance to the finals of English soccer’s two major domestic cup competitions in the same season for only the third time in their history, having previously pulled off the feat in 1982-83 and 1993-94.
But Brighton simply isn’t going to roll over, especially as it has defeated Manchester United in their previous two non-FA Cup matches. They’re also looking to advance to the FA Cup final for only the second time — it lost to Manchester United in a replay in the 1983 final.
The Red Devils are facing a bit of an injury crisis ahead of Sunday’s encounter. Centre backs Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane are ruled out, while midfielders Donny van de Beek and Scott McTominay are questionable.
Manchester United has won all five of its previous FA Cup encounters against Brighton, most recently in the quarter-finals of the 2017-18 competition.
Canadian content
Sheffield United’s roster features Daniel Jebbison, a 19-year-old forward from Oakville, Ont., who has two goals in 16 appearances in all competitions this season.
One of Jebbison’s goals came in the Blades’ 2-0 win over Millwall in the third round. In his other FA Cup appearance this season, Jebbison earned a red card in the fourth round versus Wrexham.
Jebbison was on the bench for Sheffield United in the fifth round and quarter-finals, so it’ll be interesting to see what kind of role, if any, he plays on Saturday.
Although born in Canada, Jebbison and his family relocated to England when he was 13, and he’s already played for English youth teams at the under-18, under-19 and under-20 levels. He remains uncapped for England's senior team, which means he’s still eligible for Canada, and coach John Herdman has been in touch with him. Jebbison has been coy about who he plans to represent on the international front, but many pundits believe England has the inside track on the Sheffield United forward.
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John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 20 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer.
