Ilkay Gundogan’s Wembley return is reminder of how dominant Man City were – and can be again | OneFootball

For almost half a century, Jackie Milburn held the record. Then with a thunderbolt from a Blue, Roberto Di Matteo took it. Louis Saha went still faster, scoring the earliest goal in an FA Cup final at Wembley. Until, on his last outing at England’s national stadium, Ilkay Gundogan let fly. His afternoon ended with him lifting the FA Cup, one of three trophies in his last three games as captain. It began with a goal in 13 seconds in the 2023 final. Now he is off to Wembley again.

“I personally enjoyed it very much when I was last there, yes,” said Gundogan. “It was a great day. Not just Wembley and the FA Cup, also a derby against [Manchester] United and being able to contribute with scoring two goals to get that title felt amazing.”

His perfect goodbye in 2023 meant he missed the rematch of a Manchester derby, United’s victory in the FA Cup last summer. That, in turn, means City return to London as serial semi-finalists, in the last four for a seventh consecutive season, rather than as holders when they face Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

In 2023, Gundogan was the captain who claimed the treble. Now, a different sort of treble is feasible: minus the Premier League and Champions League but with the Community Shield, won before Gundogan’s return from Barcelona, and the Club World Cup. And yet either the summer trip to the United States vanished from the thinking of two of the senior citizens, or they class it as part of the 2025-26 campaign. As Bernardo Silva reflected upon the importance of the FA Cup, he said: “It is the only competition that we can win to make us feel a little bit better this season.

“We know that this season the standards in the Premier League and the Champions League were not close to what we want them to be,” underlined the Portuguese. City are 18 points off the pace in the Premier League. They did not even make the last 16 of the Champions League. “We have an opportunity to help us not feel as disappointed and frustrated if we win the FA Cup,” said Silva. Call it a Silva lining, perhaps.

He should have fond memories of Wembley himself. He has two goals there more recently than Gundogan: a semi-final winner against Chelsea last season and a Community Shield strike against United. Nevertheless, he arrowed in on a disappointment instead. “With us playing a bad final last year, we want to try and change that and go again for the FA Cup this year,” he said.

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Man City can banish ‘disappointment’ of bad season with FA Cup win, says Bernardo Silva (Action Images via Reuters)

The league table suggests an even contest awaits on Sunday. City are a point ahead of Forest, but they lost 1-0 to Nuno Espirito Santo’s side last month. In another respect, however, they are worlds apart. Forest have still won twice as many European Cups as City, but their last major trophy was the 1990 League Cup. Since 2011, City have won eight Premier Leagues, three FA Cups, six League Cups, the Champions League, Super Cup and the Club World Cup.

“Maybe we are a little bit more experienced going to Wembley, but that doesn’t necessarily mean always an advantage,” said Gundogan, rather downplaying the difference. “It is going to be a special occasion for both teams.”

And a challenge for City. Forest’s win at the City Ground in March ranked as a typical triumph for Nuno: his side had 31 per cent possession, kept a clean sheet and scored on the break. “In terms of tactical approach, I expect similar ones to the ones we have played in the league,” added Gundogan. “We need to be ready to do better than we have done the last time we played them.”

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Callum Hudson-Odoi scored the only goal in a 1-0 win when Forest met Man City in March (Reuters)

It was only seven weeks ago and yet this should be a rather different City side: lacking the injured Erling Haaland, but with the men of the respective matches from City’s 2023 and 2019 final wins restored to the team. Gundogan took the individual honours two years ago, Kevin De Bruyne in the 6-0 thrashing of Watford six years ago. It is unclear yet if he will play in the Club World Cup. This could be the Belgian’s final City trophy. “For me, he is the greatest player that Manchester City ever had,” said Gundogan.

And yet City’s player of the FA Cup so far this year is one whose senior debut came at Wembley, but as recently as August’s Community Shield. Nico O’Reilly has three goals and two assists in the competition. He scored twice in the fifth round against Plymouth and set up both goals in a dramatic quarter-final cameo at Bournemouth. If Gundogan does not have a monopoly on FA Cup doubles in a City shirt, his return to Wembley offers a reminder of when they were an all-conquering outfit.