Overview
Manchester City and Southampton are both only one match away from reaching the opportunity to compete for the FA Cup. And the upcoming match promises to bring an emotional scenario.
The Citizens are still on the journey to conquer the domestic treble. After lifting the Carabao Cup in March, Pep Guardiola's team continued to consolidate their position in the Premier League with two consecutive victories against Arsenal and Burnley, thereby rising to the top of the rankings with extremely high form before heading to Wembley.
However, Southampton is not an easy opponent to underestimate. The Championship representative is on a 20-match unbeaten streak in all competitions (16 wins, 4 draws). Including a shocking comeback against Arsenal in the FA Cup quarter-finals thanks to Shea Charles' late goal.
In the opposite direction, Man City showed absolute strength when they crushed Liverpool 4-0 in the previous round. Their biggest star, Erling Haaland, continues to be the mainstay with an incredible scoring performance in the FA Cup - 12 goals after 12 matches, including three hat-tricks.
However, statistics point out a noteworthy point. Haaland has never scored or assisted in semi-finals or finals for Man City, despite playing 14 matches with more than 1,100 minutes of play. This may be a psychological "bottleneck" that the Norwegian striker needs to overcome.
Historically, Man City is still a formidable force in the FA Cup. They have reached the semi-finals for the eighth consecutive season since 2018-2019, and are also leading in number of wins (44), goals (157) and number of clean sheets (28) since the 2016-2017 season.
Notably, Man City has won 21 consecutive matches in the FA Cup against teams outside the Premier League - scoring 84 goals and conceding only 11 times. This is a statistic enough to make any opponent wary.
However, Wembley is not a safe haven for Guardiola. Six of his seven FA Cup defeats with Man City took place at this stadium, opening up hope for Southampton.
Southampton is facing the opportunity to rewrite history. They could become the first non-Premier League team to reach the FA Cup final since Cardiff City in the 2007-2008 season.
However, the past does not favor The Saints. They lost 8/11 matches at Wembley and were eliminated in 9/13 appearances in the FA Cup semi-finals. More notably, 8/9 teams that eliminated Southampton in this round later all won the championship.
Head-to-head record
Man City have faced Southampton four times in the FA Cup, and most of them ended with an advantage belonging to the Manchester team. They won 5-0 (1909-1910), 3-1 (2006-2007) and 4-1 (2021-2022) respectively, showing a clear superiority through each historical period.
However, The Citizens do not always have absolute dominance. In the remaining confrontation in the third round of the 1959-1960 season, Southampton once created a shock when they won heavily 5-1.
Overall, the current balance still leans towards Man City. Southampton has lost 13 of their last 18 encounters in all competitions (2 wins, 3 draws), a statistic clearly reflecting the level gap between the two teams over the years.
However, the most recent meeting did not have any goals scored, when the two teams drew 0-0 in the Premier League in May 2025. This is a detail showing that Southampton still has the ability to cause difficulties if they organize well.
Score prediction: Man City 3-1 Southampton
The match between Man City and Southampton takes place at 11:15 PM on April 25 (Vietnam time).
