Pep Guardiola has taken full responsibility for Manchester City’s unexpected defeat in the FA Cup final, attributing the loss to his poor gameplan rather than the team’s Premier League title celebrations. City entered the match at Wembley with hopes of achieving consecutive doubles, but they were outplayed by a determined Manchester United. Goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo gave United a 2-0 lead at halftime, marking one of their best performances of the season under the under-pressure manager Erik Ten Hag.
Despite City’s improved performance in the second half, with strategic substitutions like Manuel Akanji and Jeremy Doku and pushing John Stones into midfield, a late goal by Doku wasn’t enough to turn the game around.
Guardiola acknowledged his tactical errors in the first half, admitting that his decisions led to the team being in the wrong positions to attack effectively. He congratulated Manchester United on their victory and reflected on how City’s better second-half performance came too late to overcome the deficit.