Decoding Manchester City's 2022-23 FA Cup win in numbers
What's the story
Manchester City edged past their arch-rivals Manchester United 2-1 in the FA Cup 2022-23final. A double strike from midfielder Ilkay Gundogan saw the Citizens lift their second silverware of the season. This is City's seventh FA Cup honor. Bruno Fernandes with a spot-kick did bring United into the game but City managed the game brilliantly and found the winner. Here's more.
Record
Seventh FA Cup title for Manchester City
This is City's seventh FA Cup honor. Before this, they have previously bagged the title in 1903-04, 1933-34, 1955-56, 1968-69, 2010-11, and 2018-19. This was also City's second FA Cup title under their star manager Pep Guardiola. They have the joint fourth-most titles in this tournament, only behind Arsenal (14), Manchester United (12), Chelsea, Liverpool, and Spurs (8 each). They are tied with Villa.
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Fastest goal in an FA Cup final
Gundogan gave City a dream start in the FA Cup final against United. His goal came at 12 seconds from kickoff, which is the fastest goal scored in an FA Cup final, breaking Louis Saha's previous record of 25 seconds from 2009.
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Two captains script this unique record
This is the first time in the history of FA Cup finals that the starting captains of both teams have scored a goal for their respective teams. While Gundogan slammed a match-winning brace, Bruno Fernandes score from the spot to salvage some pride.
Pep Guardiola
Guardiola joins an elite group by winning the FA Cup
Guardiola has won the Premier League this season and also bagged the FA Cup. As per Opta, he became the third manager in English football to win the FA Cup and league in multiple seasons. Only after Arsene Wenger (1997-98, 2001-02) and Sir Alex Ferguson (1993-94, 1995-96 and 1998-99). He achieved this feat in 2018-19 also.
Domestic cups
Guardiola's amazing record in the domestic cup finals
Guardiola has bagged 10 domestic cup titles in his career. He has reached the finals of the domestic cups 11 times and the only time he was defeated was when he lost to Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid in the 2011 Copa del Rey. The Spaniard has also won the domestic cups twice at Barcelona (2008-09, 2011-12), Bayern (2013-14, 2015-16), and Manchester City (2018-19, 2022-23).
Gundogan
Gundogan breaks this unique FA Cup final record
Gundogan was exceptional on the night for the Citizens. As per Opta, the German midfielder at the age of 32 years and 222 days became the oldest player in FA Cup final history to score a brace since 1958. In 1958, Nat Lofthouse, at the age of 32 years and 249 days, scored a brace in the FA Cup final also against Manchester United.
Record
More records for Gundogan
Gundogan became the third captain to score twice in the FA Cup final in the 21st century, after Liverpool's Steven Gerrard (2006) and Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2020). As per Opta, he is also the first player since 1963 to score two goals from outside the box in a single FA Cup final. Notably, Gundogan scored one each with his left and right foot.
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Most goals in the 2022-23 FA Cup
The Citizens are the highest scorers in the 2022-23 FA Cup with 19 goals. This is the highest tally for any team in a single FA Cup campaign since 2019 when City themselves netted 26 times. Both times they won the tournament.
Goals
Who won the honors in the 2022-23 FA Cup?
Wrexham AFC's striker Paul Mullin shocked everyone when he bagged the Golden Ball honors in the 2022-23 FA Cup. He finished with nine goals, while City's Riyad Mahrez netted five goals. Chesterfield's Armando Dobra finished in the third spot with four goals. Wrexham's Sam Dalby and City's De Bruyne led the assists charts with four assists each in the recently concluded tournament.