Two Manchester City midfielder’s set the tone for yesterday’s win over Nottingham Forest | OneFootball

As Manchester City booked their place in this season’s FA Cup final with a 2-nil win over Nottingham Forest at Wembley, they arguably played their best 20 minutes of football for the season in the game’s opening stages. Pep Guardiola’s side was dominant, and the biggest surprise was that they only had a 1-nil lead to begin the game. But as the game progressed, two City midfielders played a key role in their victory. They were Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva. The pair were crucial to their team’s win yesterday.

Mateo Kovacic was superb yesterday for Manchester City. He was the dominant performer in midfield for Pep Guardiola’s side. Kovacic set up Rico Lewis’ opener with a driving run and a nice layoff. It was a superb piece of play that set the tone for the game’s opening 20 minutes. But after that, Kovacic was brilliant for the entire game. He helped Pep Guardiola’s side control proceedings in the first half and was key to breaking up Nottingham Forest’s play. The Croatian midfielder wasn’t as dominant in the second half but he was still one of City’s key performers before he was substituted.

Bernardo Silva was once again crucial to Manchester City’s victory.

The other Manchester City midfielder who was crucial to City’s win was Bernardo Silva. The Portuguese international was superb during City’s 2-1 win over Aston Villa. He carried that form into yesterday’s match. Bernardo did all of the grunt work that is associated with his play. He dropped deep to help City maintain possession. Alongside Mateo Kovacic, he helped Pep Guardiola’s side dominate the first half. In the second half, as Nottingham Forest pushed, it was often Bernardo who was there to do the defensive work to help his team. His work rate was crucial to City’s win once again as his late-season resurgence continued.

Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva were crucial to Manchester City’s win at Wembley yesterday. They did have help from Rico Lewis and Jack Grealish in midfield. But over the full 90 minutes, they were Manchester City’s best players. Without their midfield contribution, Pep Guardiola’s side may not have qualified for their third consecutive FA Cup final. Mateo Kovacic may have been named man-of-the-match but Bernardo’s contribution was just as important. Together they formed the foundation for a crucial win for Pep Guardiola’s side yesterday.