There’s a lot of love for Crystal Palace but shrewd punters should back Manchester City to win the FA Cup final

Here’s your starter for ten football fans: when was the last year Manchester City failed to win a major trophy? They have dominated the beautiful game in England since Pep Guardiola took the reins at the Etihad Stadium on July 1, 2016 and didn’t fare too badly before that when Manuel Pellegrini was at the helm for three years. 

They have won eight Premier League titles under those two managers as well as two FA Cups, six League Cups and the Champions League, with the vast majority of honours being won by Pep and his players.

The only year City went without any silverware was in 2017 – Pep’s first season – and, at the end of a campaign where they have dipped well below their usual unbelievable standards, there is every possibility they suffer another blank season – losing to Crystal Palace at Wembley on Saturday then falling short at the Fifa Club World Cup in July.

The Eagles have been in remarkable form since the turn of the year, impressing in the league and excelling in cup victories against Fulham and Aston Villa – making them attractive at Sky Bet’s 12/5 to lift the cup compared to no better than the 2/5 offered by William Hill for City to win the showpiece.

However. A quick summary of the last six matches between the two clubs shows Pep’s men have won four and drawn twice and this term they shared the spoils at Selhurst Park in December before Palace’s unbeaten away run – which included six wins and a draw – came to an abrupt halt with a 5-2 walloping at the Etihad. City then won four times before a tepid 0-0 draw at Southampton at the weekend while Glasner’s guys have since registered just two victories in six. 

Most neutral fans would feel Glad All Over if the Eagles raised their first major trophy but while many hearts want them to win, most heads should say back City to be victorious in normal time at 4/5 with BetGoodwin.

There have been four or more goals in five of those last six duels so over 3.5 goals is a solid proposition at 2/1 with Unibet and BetMGM while Kevin De Bruyne and Eberechi Eze are both excellent value at 4/1 with Sky Bet to score at any time.

Finally, City can regain some of the pomp and swagger they lost when they were beaten by Manchester United in last year’s final by winning a match in which both teams score at 12/5 with William Hill, Paddy Power, bet365, Betfair and a list of bookies as long as City recent trophy haul. 

• Four teams chasing Champions League football next season are in Friday night action with Tottenham and Manchester United gaining qualification if they win next Wednesday’s Europa League final in Bilbao while Aston Villa and Chelsea are able to book their places by finishing in the top five in the Premier League. 

Spurs and United are likely to rest players before heading to Spain but quite frankly their form has been so poor they are both likely to suffer heavy defeats in any case. Villa are 19/20 with William Hill and 888Sports to beat Tottenham by more than one goal and the Blues are 19/20 with the same firm to prevail by the same margin against United. 

• Aidan O’Brien’s The Lion In Winter caught the eye when winning his debut at The Curragh last July and followed that with an equally impressive victory in the Acomb Stakes at York in August. The son of the remarkable Sea The Stars is the 11/4 favourite with bet365, Paddy Power, Betfair and many others for next month’s Epsom Derby, but that price will shrink after he returns to York and is first past the post in the Dante Stakes at evens with the former firm and William Hill.

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