When the final whistle went, Pep Guardiola was subdued at first. He nodded slowly and turned to his left to walk the few yards towards where Chelsea’s callow young caretaker coach, Calum McFarlane, was waiting. Guardiola shook his hand and whispered some words of encouragement in his ear.
Joan Patsy, a trusted member of his backroom staff, rushed off the bench and wrapped him in a hug. Guardiola made for some of his players. He embraced Rayan Cherki, who had helped transform a moribund FA Cup Final into a match that was back-loaded with energy.
He began to lecture Cherki in that intense, unflinching way he often reserves for the minutes after a match. And then he looked around the ground where he has tasted so much success and applauded the City fans.
The decoding started again. Was this one of the last steps in his farewell march? Some of the people congratulating him looked as if they were saying goodbye. This 1-0 victory over Chelsea had brought him his 20th trophy as City manager. It would not be the worst way to bring down the curtain on the dynasty he has built.
League games away at Bournemouth on Tuesday and at home to Aston Villa next Sunday remain and it may yet be that when they are over, Guardiola will have won his seventh Premier League trophy, although that is in Arsenal’s hands. If this was the last trophy, Guardiola looked as if he was savouring it.
He has one more year left on his contract and it may still be that he will see that out. Many, though, believe that we are in the last days of the reign of one of the greatest managers who has ever graced English football and even if this final was far from a classic, it was made less ordinary by the suspicion it may have been Guardiola’s last.
Pep Guardiola took in the occasion before celebrating as he led Manchester City to FA Cup glory at Wembley
John Stones and Bernardo Silva – two players leaving at the end of the season – lifted the trophy high
Prince William greeted the players before the game and handed out the medals at full-time
He led his team up the stairs after Chelsea had collected their runners-up medals. The City fans sang his name as he climbed and climbed through Wembley’s levels. They were made to wait for a little by some lifts and the cameras caught Guardiola laughing as he talked to Bernardo Silva.
He shook every hand proffered to him as he walked along the row towards the trophy and bent while Prince William draped another winner’s medal around his neck. This was his third FA Cup win and when Bernardo Silva lifted the cup, he stood at the edge of the group, applauding while they jumped and cheered.
He won his first trophy in the English game in February 2018 when City beat Arsenal 3-0 to win the Carabao Cup. That team featured Sergio Aguero, Fernandinho and Vincent Kompany. Bernardo Silva came off the bench that day but this is a different team. This is the latest, perhaps the last, incarnation of the dynasty that Pep built.
The contrast with the opposite bench could hardly have been more startling. McFarlane was taking charge of just his sixth professional game. He has nothing to reproach himself for. In a poor match, Chelsea were far from outclassed. Despite that, their fans will be hoping a wretched season may at least end with the announcement that Xabi Alonso will be their next boss. There is little else from which they can gain consolation.
The game suffered a tepid opening. There was not much to quicken the pulse. The first chance came from a mistake. Reece James was dispossessed on the edge of his own box and Erling Haaland ran in on goal.
Haaland looked up. Omar Marmoush was making a run to the back post but was marked. Haaland’s angle was tight. He was caught in two minds. His shot ended up being half a cross. It did not trouble Robert Sanchez and it flew high over the head of Marmoush.
The temperature of the game rose a few minutes later when Enzo Fernandez made a fine tackle to take the ball from Jeremy Doku. When it ran loose towards Silva, Fernandez launched himself into another tackle. His feet were off the ground but he was lucky he missed Bernardo’s leg. Fernandez escaped with a yellow card.
The game retreated into torpor until two minutes before half-time. Marc Guehi, who had been immaculate in City’s defence, played a fine ball through to Haaland. Haaland ran on to it and clipped a shot in on goal but it did not have enough power to beat Sanchez.
A neat flick in the second-half from Antoine Semenyo was the difference between the sides
Calum McFarlane, Chelsea’s interim manager, was left to console his players at Wembley
At the other end, Joao Pedro burst into the City area and was baulked by Abdukodir Khusanov. He fell to the ground and Chelsea appealed strongly for a penalty. They appeared to have a case but referee Darren England waved their claims aside. When the half-time whistle blew, Chelsea’s players confronted him about it.
City started the second-half well. Nico O’Reilly floated a cross to the back post and Semenyo hung in the air to meet it. It was a wonderful leap but he could not quite time it so that he got over it. His header flew just over the crossbar.
Rayan Cherki had come on at half-time and he added some urgency to City’s play but Guardiola’s side were indebted to Rodri for nodding a header from Moises Caicedo out from underneath the bar.
Chelsea entered a phase of the game where they appealed for a penalty almost every time they touched the ball. That act can become wearing, although they are far from alone in practising it.
Then, finally, 19 minutes from time, the game was illuminated by a touch of innovation and class. Haaland escaped down the inside right channel and crossed low into the box towards Semenyo. The ball was behind him but he squared up to it and flicked it with his right foot through his own legs and through the legs of Levi Colwill. Sanchez had no chance.
The chances came thick and fast now. Fernandez hooked the ball over the bar from close range when he should have scored, O’Reilly played a pass just behind Haaland when City seemed certain to score, Chelsea appealed for two more penalties and Sanchez produced a fine reaction save to push over a piledriver from Cherki.
City saw the game out, calmly and professionally until the whistle went and we wondered whether this would be the last time Guardiola would walk this turf.
Fifteen minutes later, the celebrations were in full swing. Guardiola stood alone in front of the City fans, his arms folded across his chest, watching and listening. The music of Joy Division was floating across Wembley. ‘Love will tear us apart again,’ they sang.
