Arsenal vs Manchester City: FA Cup semi-final: goals, action, match report

Arsenal 2-1 (aet) Manchester City: full time

Anyone who dipped out of today's FA Cup semi-final after 45 minutes would be aghast to learn that it was Arsene Wenger's side rather than Guardiola's City that go on to face Chelsea in the May 27 final back at the iconic stadium.

It took a bundled goal from Chilean striker Alexis Sanchez to put the North London outfit ahead in a tie that, for great periods the Gunners were totally outclassed as City bossed possession but failed to break through the well disciplined Arsenal rear-guard.

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A deft Yaya Toure ball found Aguero who opened the scoring to give City a deserved lead. The goal instead of galvanising the Mancunian side in turn gave a jolt to the men in red who finally took the game to City and were rewarded as Monreal volleyed home with 20 minutes remaining.

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The woodwork saved Arsenal on two occasions as the game went to an energy sapping extra-time. The free flowing, neat possession football of the Manchester City from the first half was long a thing of the past as Arsenal found the winner. The ball wasn't cleared as a Wellbeck mis-kick fell to Sanchez who stabbed the ball past Bravo. Arsenal are back in a FA Cup final, some three years after overcoming Hull City in a thrilling final.

Wenger In !  

Min 31 | That's it... Chelsea will face Arsenal !

Min 31 | Arsenal fans celebrating as they can feel another FA Cup final....

Min 30 | Last minute, unless anything drastic happens in the final seconds it's a London derby on May 27.   

Min 28 | Ozil breaks for Arsenal and is unable to find a teammate as he is robbed. Toure finds himself with space at the edge of the area but fails to secure enough curve on the shot. Ozil off with Coquelin on for the Gunners. 

Min 26 | Urgency required for City now as Yaya Toure is at the heart of every build-up  now for the Mancunian outfit. 22 very tired looking players on the Wembley turf!  

Min 25 | Wellbeck breaks for Arsenal but tired legs fail to offer him support and the player loses the ball as De Bryune come close for City with the ball shaving the Arsenal post.

Min 23 | City pushing but arsenal defending resolutely...

Min 20 | Deph drives the ball into the side netting when it seemed easier to score...

Min 20 | Ten to go, Arsenal heading to a Wembley FA Cup final...Wenger In ? 

Min 19 | Danger as City win a free-kick on the edge of the Arsenal area. Cech lines up a wall of five. Toure to take ...but the Ivorian drives the ball into the wall.

Min 17 | City looking for the long ball option as Delph gets a shot off but fails to trouble Cech.

ET Second period | Min 15 | Ineacho on for Sterling and the sky blues get us underway 

Min 17 | Time called as we head towards the final 15 ....

Min 17 | Wellbeck almost makes it three for Arsenal as Xhaka gets a card. 

Min 16 | Chamberlain off for Bellerin

Min 15 | Players getting involved in a spat of pushing as the intensity levels grow, Delph booked as a result

Min 14 | Sterling fires and Holding almost steers the ball into his own net...City pressing .... 

Min 12 | Arsenal vans find their voice as City need to dig deep....  

Min 11 | The ball scrambles around the area from the free kick and falls to the Chilean who alertly fires home. Scrappy goal but it may be the strike to take Arsenal to the final.

Min 10 | Free-kick deep inside the City half for Arsenal. Ozil to take ....and gooooollllllllll

Min 7 | Fernando also on for City with Aguero the place making way.

Min 7 | Fernandinho injured and makes way for Delph set to enter the action for the Citizens.

Min 4 | Scrappy stuff here at Wembley in this early stage of extra-time, no side able to dominate proceedings as Arsenal go close with a Alexis shot. Corner for Wenger's man as Holding heads over...i 

Min 2 | City certainly shaded the first half with honours even in the second. The Sky blues will point to two attempts hitting the Arsenal woodwork and probably are the more deserving of the sides to take a place in the May 27 final. 

ET Min 1 | Here we go again. Another thirty minutes needed at Wembley.... Arsenal kick off.... 

Arsenal 1-1 Manchester City: second half live

Min 93 | It's extra time at Wembley....

Min 92 | Both coaches on their feet yelling last minutes instructions. Unlikely to see any risks taken by the teams at this juncture.

Min 91 | Three minutes of time to be added.

Min 89 | Just one substitution used per team which will be of benefit for both sides as a further half hour of football beckons.

Min 89 | Card for de Bryune as he trips Alexis

Min 85 | Wellbeck (on for Giroud) almost seals it for the Londoners as his shot clips the City post, Tiredness evident on the Wenbley surface with a further 30 minutes on the cards for both teams. 

Min 84 | Wenger paces the Arsenal technical area as his side long balls into the City half. Arsenal pressing with City happy to launch counter attacks.

Min 82 | Woodwork again as Fernandinho rockets a header off the crossbar. 

Min 81 | Ozil through but runs out of options as the play is getting now more open with legs tiring. The German player runs into a wall of sky blue. 

Min 78 | Toure off the post ! So close for City with Cech well out of position.

Min 75 | Extra time on the cards at Wembley  as head into the final 15'?

Min 73 | Fine finish from the Spaniard, just as it looked that the Gunners would roll over and kiss their season goodbye. 

Min 71 | Gooooool, Monreal puts the North Londoners level 

Min 69 | Fernandinho carded for a cheeky trip. A card a piece per team.   

Min 66 | Pep Guardiola is some 25' away from a FA Cup final in his first season in English football. 

Min 62 | The move started as Toure robs Xhaka and threads a delightful ball into the Argentinian's path. Arguably Cech should have come off his line with more haste but take nothing away from the finish from the ex-Atleti player.

Arsenal 0-0 Manchester City: live

Madrid player.   

Min 62 | Goooooooooooooooool ....Aguero chips Cech to put the Citizens ahead.

Min 60 | Little rhythm to the second half with the action peppered with fouls and injuries. City not as domineering as they were in the first 45'. 

Min 56 | Great work from Sane slotting through a dangerous cross but no attacking City player able to get a shot on the Arsenal goal. We're seeing a slightly more Arsenal in this half.  

Min 54 | Alexis slips a free-kick horizontally as Xhaka fails to connect with his left footed drive. 

Min 52 | Fine run from Chamberlain forces City to clear for a corner, the burst forward from the England international aids the Arsenal fans to find their voice.

Min 50 | Otamendi heads downwards and the ball creeps by the Arsenal goal.

Min 47 | Fashion interlude: Both coaches sporting a v-neck jumper, white shirt and tie look at Wembley today. Wenger going for a red tie with Pep rocking a blue neck accessory.....and now back to the football! 

Min 46 | City get us underway at Wembley....

Arsenal 0-0 Manchester City: half time wrap

Manchester City take to the Wembley dressing room with their heads held high, in the knowledge that they have taken the tie to Arsene Wenger's side and can point to a controversial disallowed goal, which was ruled out for Sane's delivery being adjudged to have crossed the by-line. 

Arsenal have been disappointing, seemingly content to permit their forays forward to dead ball situations and creating two banks of four when city attack. Will we see a more offensive approach from the French coach in the second period ?

One player we sadly won't be seeing more of is the mercurial David Silva who was forced to retire from the action after failing to recover from a robust challenge fro Gabriel.

Plenty of intensity on the Wembley playing surface but what we really need is a goal to spice proceedings up ! 

Arsenal 0-0 Manchester City: live

Min 46 | Mr. Pawson calls time on an intense half at Wembley. 

Min 46 | Into added time, just 1 minute of injury time to be played.

Min 45 | Poor take from Oxlade-Chamberlain sending the ball wide. Sums up Arsenal's half !

Min 45 | Into the last minute we go with another dangerous free-kick awarded to the Gunners.

Min 43 | Arsenal's only glimmers of danger have come from Ozil dead balls. Very passive approach from Wenger today in the semi.

Min 40 | Major controversy at Wembley as City have the ball in the net but the linesman flags claiming that Sanes cross had crossed the goal line. Very tight decision and repeats suggest that City can feel hard done by. 

Min 39 | Ozil floats a free-kick over which Bravo palms back into open play. The ball is fired back at the Chilean keepèr as the whistle goes for offside.

Min 37 | As you were, City bossing the game, retraining possession and Arsenal happy to sit deep with all bar Giroud behind the ball.

Min 33 | Aguero on the ground and in pain following a robust tackle from Koscielny , Guardiola takes the time to give instructions to his side as Wenger sits on the Arsenal technical area.     

Min 29 | Aguero goes to ground in the box and the referee waves away his protest. Good decision from Mr. Pawson. The Argentine clipped his own leg ....

Min 25 | Alexis fouls Sterling and earns the first card of the day. City on top as they have been from the outset and a goal for the Citizens is just a question of time.  

Min 23 | Bad news for lovers of artful and majestic passing as David Silva is forced to retire with Sterling his replacement. The Canary Islander still feeling the after effects of the earlier foul inflicted by Gabriel.

Min 21 | Decent break from Arsenal as Ozil draws a foul from Kompany. Ball in the net but Koscielny ruled offside. 

Min 18 | Clichy fails to observe the simple youth football mantra of "head over the ball" and fires the match-ball high and wide into the banks of red and white clad Arsenal fans. City in total control.

Min 15 | A tame header from Giroud into the City keepers hands as Silva forces a top over from Cech as City forge looking for a goal that looks likelier at coming at the end where the Arsenal fans are gathered.

Min 13 | Silva gets fouled by Gabriel and looks in trouble...

Min 11 | City with plenty of lateral passing looking for that final ball but being crowded out by a sea of 10 red and white shirts.

Min 9 | What a ball from Silva, precision stuff from the Canary Islander as Aguero fails to latch onto the delivery and Arsenal clear for a corner.

Min 7 | Arsenal chasing shadows as City conformable in possession but De Bruyne attempt apart nothing to trouble the Arsenal goal.  

Min 5 | Brighter start from City who are straight out of their trap with Arsenal failing to secure any consistent possession. 

Min 3 | First strike goes to City as De Bruyne strikes from outside the area but fails to secure direction on his right footed effort and never troubles Cech.

Min 2 | May 27th is the date of the final.... who will join Chelsea back at the iconic Wembley on that date?

Min 1 | Off we go, at Wembley stadium, the side from London get us underway... 

Arsenal vs Manchester City live stream online: latest news

15:59 | The teams take to a sun-kissed Wembley, Arsenal in their classic red and white, City in their sky blue kit. Gods of FA Cup semi final football, another belter please ! 

15:58 | A mild 16C in Wembley (perfect conditions for football) as Wembley is a sea of red and white and sky and white) 

15:55 | We'll have extra time and then penalty kicks if the match is tied after 90 minutes.

15:50 | Arsenal with 12 FA Cups in their trophy cabinet whilst City look to add to their five FA Cup hauls 

15:28 | So who will join Chelsea in the final? An Arsenal win is priced at 3/1 with Pep taking the citizens aback to Wembley at 5/6.  

15:15 | We've already had one cup semi final north of the border today as Celtic overcame arch rivals Rangers to secure a final date with Aberdeen.

Team news confirmation:

Arsenal XI: Cech, Gabriel, Koscielny, Holding, Monreal, Xhaka, Ramsey , Sanchez, Ozil, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Giroud

Man City XI: Braco, Clichy, Company, Yaya, Otamendi, Fernandinho, Navas, Sane, Silva, De Bryune, Aguero  

14:02 | Everyone is hoping for a fantastic atmosphere to surround two, aesthetically pleasing footballing sides. There was an allocation of 32,000 tickets given to each club but expect the national stadium to be close to its 90,000 capacity.

13:51 | Think you know a lot about Arsenal in the FA Cup? Try out this quiz and prove it.

13:28 | Promising, young Gabriel Jesus may feature for Manchester City at some point today and his manager says that he has "Europe in his hands". 

13:07 | Television and radio were great inventions back in the day and despite the cool, hip, modern, football experience of minute-by-minute, they are somehow still in existence. And we've made a little guide to help if you want to go down that route.

12:49 | Much speculation over the future of star Gunners, Sanchez and Ozil, (despite Wenger comments to the contrary) but one Arsenal player could return to the team after this season. Jack Wilshire has performed well on loan at Bournemouth although is currently out until the summer with a broken leg.

12:21 | Guardiola arrived in Manchester with much expected of him, even in his debut season. With fourth place in the league far from secured, has the campaign been a success? He thinks so.

11:44 | The last time City were at Wembley was in the 2016 League Cup final when they went on to beat Liverpool on penalties. Arsenal have tended to feel quite at home at Wembley stadium and are looking to make it three FA Cups in four years!

11:14 | 2011 saw Man City win the FA Cup for the fifth time in the club's history. This pales compared to that of their opponents who have lifted the trophy 12 times, a feat equalled only by the other Manchester club. 

10:53 | The Gunners and City haven't met in the FA Cup for almost four decades (1971 to be precise when Arsenal fans went home happy).

10:14 | City boss Guardiola has Gabriel Jesus back in his squad and is hopeful he can play a part:

"We are going to travel, all the squad, to Wembley. He will be part of that. After that we will see."

09:50 | Arsene Wenger knows his team are not at the peak of their powers coming into this game:

"Maybe not at the maximum of our confidence because we had recently some disappointing results, but that is a good opportunity to show we are ready for a fight and how much we want to go to the final."

09:12 | In case you missed it yesterday, here's how the first semi-final played out between Chelsea and Spurs. [Spolier alert: a London club won!]

09:00 | In seven hours we'll be kicking off in London with our live coverage but there is so much more to be talked about prior to then. Throughout the day we'll share thoughts from both clubs, statistics on previous fixtures and plenty more...

Arsenal vs Manchester City: preview

It's a North London versus East Manchester clash at Wembley on Sunday, in the second 2016/17 FA Cup semi-final. For both sides, the FA Cup represents a last realistic chance to win a trophy. Arsenal sit in sixth position in the Premier League, while Manchester City are in fourth.

Wenger's team arrived at this stage of the competion via victories over Preston North End, Southampton, Sutton United, and Lincoln City. City swept aside West Ham, Crystal Palace, Huddersfield, and Middlesbrough.

Surprisingly, the two clubs have not met in the FA Cup since 1971. On that occasion, Arsenal won in the fifth round, and went on to lift the trophy.

Arsenal: team news

Arsene Wenger may deploy a three-man defence once more, after Arsenal used that system in the away victory at Middlesbrough on Monday.

The pensive Frenchman, whose future at Arsenal continues to provoke much discussion, will be without Perez, Mustafi, Cazorla, Welbeck, and Ospina, who are injured.

Hector Bellerin, sporting an adventurous new haircut, is hoping for a recall after he was dropped for the match on Teeside.

Wenger ostensibly views the FA Cup as a welcome diversion from a stuttering league campaign. "Maybe [we are] not at the maximum of our confidence because we had recently some disappointing results, but that is a good opportunity to show we are ready for a fight and how much we want to go to the final", he said to the press.

Manchester City: team news

Gabriel Jesus will travel to Wembley following a period of absence with a foot injury. The Brazilian flair-merchant made a flying start to his career in Manchester and, if he is fit enough to feature, will bolster Pep Guardiola's attacking options.

"Today he will make part in the training with us and he is coming back with his happiness. We are so happy he is coming back again," Guardiola commented.

One player who will not feature, is John Stones. The young defender missed the match against Southampton through injury, and will be unavailable once again.

Arsenal vs Manchester City live: possible line-ups

Arsenal: Cech; Holding, Gabriel, Koscielny; Chamberlain, Xhaka, Ramsey, Monreal; Sanchez, Giroud, Ozil.

Manchester City: Bravo; Navas, Kompany, Otamendi, Clichy; Fernandinho; Sane, Silva, De Bruyne, Sterling, Aguero.

Arsenal vs Manchester City: live online match betting

Fancy a flutter? With Betfair, Arsenal are available at 16/1, and Manchester City are available at 10/1.

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 Arsenal vs Manchester City: live stream match build-up