Wembley is the venue for the first FA Cup semi-final between Manchester City and Sheffield United. Two divisions currently separate the teams, but this is almost nailed on to be a Premier League fixture next season with promotion imminent for the Blades. Their focus and attention can briefly be put on this Wembley showdown, whilst Man City still have a potential treble within their sights.
Go ahead and use the stats from their Premier League and Championship campaigns so far, where they both sit in second, and pick yourself a winning bet builder. My Stats Pack Guide should provide you with some additional assistance if you’re unsure how to use the data.
confirmed Lineups
Man City are expected to rest several key men for this clash with their upcoming game vs Arsenal in the Premier League looking far tougher on paper and realistically more important. Top hitman upfront Erling Haaland should be benched, whilst the likes of Grealish and John Stones will probably be given a breather as well. Nathan Ake is confirmed out injured and the centre back partnership could be Laporte and Akanji. Stefan Ortega is the cup keeper for Man City and should line up in between the sticks.
Wes Foderingham should return in goal after his two game suspension. Sheffield United have been lining up in a 3-5-2 formation for most of the season and even though this is Man City, they are unlikely to change. Jack O’Connell and Rhian Brewster are out injured long term. James McAtee and Tommy Doyle are not allowed to play this match because they are on loan from Man City.
Team Stats
Man City average a massive 2.60 goals per game and only 0.93 against. These numbers are close to their xG and xGA metrics even if they are overachieving a bit in front of goal. City only concede an average of 2.10 SOT per game and have fired in a hefty 15.93 attempts per fixture.
Pep Guardiola’s men are a very clean unit and have obtained just 1.27 cards per game, whilst drawing 2.23 from their opponents. It’s very similar with the corner statistics. They rack up on average 6.67 corners and conceded just 2.32 which is an extremely low amount. City really do tend to dominate and have complete control of most Premier league matches, so this could increase even more vs Championship opposition.
Sheffield United average 1.55 goals per game and only 0.86 against. They average 13.52 shots per game, of which an impressive 4.83 are on target. Just 2.79 SOT against per game demonstrates their excellent defence. These numbers are from the Championship though and facing a team like City is a completely different proposition.
Corners have been high in Blades matches. They average nearly 6 corners per game themselves with 4.93 against. Cards have also been on the high side and their fixtures have averaged nearly five cards overall, 2.36 for and 2.24 against.
Player Shots and Shots on Target
With Erling Haaland potentially benched and other key players possibly given a breather it would be sensible to wait until the City XI is announced before taking individual player shots and shots on target. Obvious candidates would of course be Alvarez, De Bruyne, Mahrez and also some of the more central players such as Phillips and Gundogan might try their luck more here.
Ollie McBurnie has averaged 3.52 shots per 90 mins with a 1.59 SOT rate. Iliman Ndiaye scored the winner vs Tottenham in the quarter finals and is next on the list with 1.73 shots per 90 mins. Sande Berge and Oliver Norwood might just chance their luck from distance if given the opportunity, but you feel that Sheffield United’s shooting opportunities are going to be quite limited here.
Player Goals and Assists
Erling Haaland is of course top of the Premier League scoring charts but if he doesn’t have many minutes here then it’s worth noting that Alvarez has netted 7 times and Kevin De Bruyne on 5 occasions. The Belgian playmaker De Bruyne has 15 assists whilst Phil Foden has 5 of those in addition to 9 goals. Even without Haaland, the Citizens sill pack a ridiculous amount of firepower.
Iliman Ndiaye is a massive dual threat with 13 goals and 8 assists. Ollie McBurnie has scored 11 goals and enjoyed a decent season. This will obviously be a much tougher match for them both, but City need to respect them. From midfield, Sander Berge has scored five goals and supplied five assists. Centre back Anel Ahmedhodic has been dangerous from set pieces nailing four goals. Midfield playmaker Oliver Norwood has five assists which is the joint second most on this list.
Player passes
The Citizens average nearly 65% possession which is the most of any team in the Premier League. Now facing Championship opponents that figure could rise even more. It can be a dangerous game taking City players in the passing markets though. If they are comfortably ahead and looking ahead to the Arsenal match, then anyone might get subbed off early. It is guess work but perhaps the centre backs Laporte and Akanji are the best options to last the full match, especially with Nathan Ake injured.
Sheffield United average 50.5% possession but are more likely to have significantly reduced numbers of passing in this game considering they are facing Premier League opponents. Oliver Norwood averages 60.8 passes per 90 mins but nobody else stands out even at the 50 passes mark.
Manchester City Cards and Fouls
City are known to be a very clean team who pick up few cards. They are unlikely to be under much pressure in this game and the biggest risk of fouls or cards are probably on Sheffield United counter attacks. If Kalvin Phillips starts, then he could be vulnerable. The former Leeds man has been lacking general minutes this season and hardly impressed much when he’s played. Facing potentially Ndiaye if he drops deep into the hole then this is a matchup to watch.
Attacker Iliman Ndiaye has been fouled 1.81 times per 90 mins and can be tricky for any defence. He dribbles over 4 times per game and is an elusive threat. Ollie McBurnie is a physical striker who will put himself about and George Baldock could be a live threat from the right wing back slot if they manage to break.
Matchups to watch
Kalvin Phillips vs Iliman Ndiaye
Manuel Akanji vs Ollie McBurnie
Riyad Mahrez vs George Baldock
Sheffield United Cards and Fouls
Defenders John Egan and Anel Ahmedhodzic rank highest for cards with 12 and 10 respectively. Striker Ollie McBurnie averages 1.41 fouls per 90 mins, the most of anyone on this list. Midfielder Oliver Norwood and wing back George Baldock are also contenders for fouls and cards in this game.
A lot of course depends on who starts for City here, but all of their attackers are capable of causing huge problems. Both potential wingers Mahrez and Foden average close to four dribbles per 90 mins and in the case of Mahrez fouled over twice per game. Gundogan and De Bruyne will give their own obvious issues to the Blades. Julian Alvarez is of course no Erling Haaland, but is a World Cup winner with Argentina and poses his own set of challenges to defenders.
Matchups to watch
John Egan vs Julian Alvarez
Anel Ahmedhodzic vs Kevin De Bruyne
George Baldock vs Phil Foden
My Bet Builder Picks of the Pack
With City’s focus likely elsewhere, United may well sense blood and cause a real upset in their search for silverware this season. City meanwhile are on the hunt for 3 trophies. That only means good things for a bet builder, so I’ve picked out some of my best value bet builder selections from the stats.
Manchester City vs Sheffield United
22nd April
kick off 16:45 Sheffield United over 1.5 cards
I think this occasion could get intense for United, and are likely to want to beat City in the physical game.
Going in early in the challenges, not giving City time to settle, and feeding off the crowd. That screams fouls and cards.
Sheffield United averages 2.36 cards per game this season in the Championship, while City opposition in the Premier League average 2.23 cards.
United have received 2 or more cards in 3 of their last 4 FA Cup matches.
Over 2.5 GoalsMan City games this season average 3.53 goals.
City generate an xG of 2.12 goals themselves.
Sheffield United games are lower at 2.41 goals per game, but against much weaker opposition.
United haven’t been scared to open up their defence to adopt a more attacking approach in the FA Cup.
This campaign alone they’ve managed score lines of 3-3, 3-1, and 3-2 against Wrexham and Blackburn.
Man City have broken the over 2.5 goals on their own in 3 of their 4 FA Cup clashes without conceding – only missing out in their tactical 1-0 showdown against Arsenal.
They scored 6 against Championship leaders Burnley.
Man City over 5.5 cornersCity average 6.67 corners per game.
Sheffield United concede 4.93 corners per game in the Championship.
Anel Ahmedhodzic to commit 1+ foulsAhmedhodzic averages 1.34 fouls p/90, and has received a club-high 12 bookings this season.
He has committed 15 fouls in hi s last 9 games.
Up against Phil Foden who draws 1.35 fouls p/90 and attempts 3.65 take-ons.
