Chelsea vs. Man City live score: FA Cup final result, updates, stats from Wembley with Cherki on after goalless first half

Chelsea vs. Man City live score: FA Cup final result, updates, stats from Wembley with Cherki on after goalless first half originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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WEMBLEY STADIUM, LONDON – The 145th FA Cup final between Manchester City and Chelsea remained goalless after a listless first half.

City are seeking to complete a domestic knockout double after beating Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final, but this game lacked the intensity of that May encounter.

Erling Haaland had the ball in the net before the half hour but Matheus Nunes was clearly offside before crossing for City’s top scorer to tap home.

Chelsea grew into the match as the interval approached and Joao Pedro had penalty appeals waved away in stoppage time when he tumbled under a shoulder charge from Abdukodir Khusanov.

The Sporting News is following the FA Cup final live, providing score updates and commentary

Chelsea vs. Man City FA Cup final score

Venue: Wembley Stadium (London, UK)
Referee: Darren England

Starting lineups:

Chelsea (3-4-2-1, right to left): 1. Robert Sanchez (GK) – 29. Wesley Fofana, 6. Levi Colwill, 21. Jorrel Hato – 27. Malo Gusto, 24. Reece James, 25. Moises Caicedo, 3. Marc Cucurella – 10. Cole Palmer, 8. Enzo Fernandez – 20. Joao Pedro

Man City (4-2-3-1 right to left): 1. James Trafford (GK) — 27. Matheus Nunes, 45. Abdukodir Khusanov, 15. Marc Guehi, 33. Nico O’Reilly — 16. Rodri, 20. Bernardo Silva — 42. Antoine Semenyo, 7. Omar Marmoush (10. Omar Marmoush), 11. Jeremy Doku — 9. Erling Haaland

Chelsea vs. Man City FA Cup final live updates, highlights, and commentary

47 mins: Cherki involved straight away. Finds O’Reilly who hangs up a cross to the far post that Semenyo heads over.

Kickoff: 2nd Half

We’re back underway. Rayan Cherki replaces Omar Marmoush for Manchester City after going through a sustained half-time warm-up on the field.

Halftime

Well, considering the quality on both sides, this has really not been very good at all. Let’s try again in 15 minutes.

45+1 mins: Three minutes to be added onto a pretty forgettable first half in the 145th FA Cup final. Oooh, mistake from Bernardo Silva and Joao Pedro could be in. Khusanov comes over to close the door and down he goes. Good old-fashioned shoulder-to-shoulder. Play on!

Pedro goes down asking for a penalty but the referee waves play on 👀

📺 Watch live on TNT Sports and HBO Max pic.twitter.com/iBE86d8JQ0

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 16, 2026

44 mins: City have been quiet as an attacking force for the past few minutes but Guehi whips a gorgeous through ball for Haaland. Sanchez stands firm and turns the shot behind.

41 mins: Chelsea having a decent spell of pressure here. Right-wing corner headed clear before Rodri is able to buy a free-kick.

39 mins: Chelsea look to Gusto again. He has Palmer for support this time but his cross towards Cucurella is overhit.

38 mins: Gusto is looking like Chelsea’s main attacking outlet at the moment. A volleyed cross this time that Guehi stoops to head away.

36 mins: Gusto fashions some room for a cross but Trafford sees it all the way.

34 mins: Semenyo cuts inside from the free-kick but smashes over left-footed.

33 mins: Khusanov mops up inside the City box and punts clear. That releases Semenyo and Cucurella very much decides it’s time to take a yellow. Could be a long hour to come.

31 mins: Concerns for Chelsea here, with Joao Pedro on the deck. He seems to have done something to his thigh. He’s going to try to continue.

29 mins: Oh my, that’s a big of a naughty challenge from Fernandez into Silva’s shins after a tackle with Semenyo. Referee Darren England opts for a yellow card. 

27 mins: City have the ball in the net but Nunes had clearly run offside to collect Semenyo’s pass before crossing for Haaland to tap in. Felt like he didn’t really need to be off there and City got their timing wrong.

23 mins: Doku and Haaland hustle James out of possession and Haaland is into the box. It’s a tight angle, though, and he clatters his shot out for a throw-in. Can see what he was trying, but that’s obviously not his finest work.

22 mins: Gusto and Palmer close the door on Doku and Chelsea can break. Well, Joao Pedro can on his own and Khusanov has the afterburners on. Eventually, the Brazil international gets a shot off but he loses his footing and Trafford unfussily gathers.

21 mins: They take it short and are chased all the way back into their own half by City. Goodness me, that was wretched. 

20 mins: Chelsea muster an attack, which keeps going despite Joao Pedro treading on the ball. Teasing cross by Gusto an Nunes is forced to put a diving header behind.

14 mins: Semenyo seems to have taken a shine to Cucurella. He slots ball into a dangerous area through the six-yard box but there’s no one there. A touch too far in front of Haaland.

12 mins: City push Chelsea back. The Londoners hold their shape well and are rewarded as no one in sky blue makes a run for Guehi’s pass. But they do look a touch passive so early on.

10 mins: Ball in eventually to the back post. Rodri nods it into the danger zone. Haaland swings a leg to try to hook the ball over his head. Fernandez and James are in harm’s way and the Norwegian is punished for dangerous play.

9 mins: Free-kick to City about 35 yards out. Semenyo decides it’s ripe for a shot. He’ll have had better ideas. City attack again down the left. Marmoush and Doku combine in a triangle with O’Reilly, who wins the game’s first corner.

7 mins: Semenyo cuts inside, into the box. His left-footed shot is deflected and spins towards Marmoush, who can’t contort himself to make meaningful contact with the volley.

5 mins: Not a great deal has happened so far. Colwill and Nunes have both scruffily duffed passs out of play. Now Cucurella with room to move down the City right, but he gets unceremoniously sat down by Khusanov.

Kickoff: 1st Half

Chelsea get us underway, back to Sanchez. He pumps it long. City settle into some possession.

5 mins before kickoff: Here are the teams. It’s been subdued before during the build-up, but the atmosphere has whipped up now. The past 10 FA Cup finals have featured one of these teams, but it’s the first time they’ve played each other in the showpiece. Quirky.

10 mins before kickoff: As FA Cup final traditional dictates, we’re now having the official tournament hymn Abide With Me. Always a beautiful moment, sung this year by Bradford’s Bantam of the Opera choir and the Band of the Household Cavalry. Now we’re into big tunes, displays and pyro. The two teams will be with us shortly.

30 mins before kickoff: There’s plenty of speculation still swirling over whether or not Pep Guardiola will see out the final year of his contract at Manchester City next season. If he does, there might be some bridges to mend and decision to make with some of his squad members. Rodri’s recovery means City came into this game with a fully-fit first-team squad. As a consequence, Nico Gonzlez, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Josko Gvardiol and Rico Lewis are not even in the matchday squad. Gvardiol only returned from a broken leg in midweek, when Ait-Nouri also started. Lewis essentially disappeared from view a few months ago, but Nico’s absence is the most noteworthy. The Spanish holding midfielder scored a screaming winner in the semifinal against Southampton but followed that up with a poor showing in the 3-3 draw at Everton. This is the second consecutive game where he has not made the matchday squad despite being the only specialist cover for Rodri.

It feels a safe bet there will be a market for Nico this summer. It’s felt for some time as if the same could be said for Marmoush, but a match-winning performance in a cup final might yet alter the trajectory of the Egypt star’s City career.

Getty Images

45 mins before kickoff: Here’s a the Chelsea team. Levi Colwill keeps his place in the starting XI for only his second match since an ACL injury decimated his season. Colwill is part of a back three with Wesley Fofana and Jorrel Hato. Captain Reece James starts in central midfield, with Malo Gusto at wing-back. Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez will play in support of Joao Pedro in attack.

Lining up for Chelsea! 💪#CFC | #EmiratesFACuppic.twitter.com/1IllsmOwHc

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 16, 2026

1 hour before kickoff: The teams are in. Omar Marmoush is rewarded for his goals in City’s past two matches with a start, playing off Erling Haaland. It means Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden must be content with spots on the bench. Rodri returns from a groin injury for his first start since last month’s Premier League win over Arsenal. How many minutes does the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner have in his legs? Marc Guehi starts the cup final 12 months on from skippering Crystal Palace to victory over City in this fixture.

Your FA Cup final line-up! ​​💪🩵

XI | Trafford, Nunes, Khusanov, Guéhi, O’Reilly, Rodri, Bernardo (C), Semenyo, Marmoush, Doku, Haaland

SUBS | Donnarumma, Dias, Reijnders, Stones, Ake, Kovacic, Cherki, Savinho, Foden

🤝 @etihadpic.twitter.com/VmKbV57Pr0

— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 16, 2026

1 hr 30 mins before kickoff: Plenty of observers have remarked that this isn’t exactly an FA Cup final teeming with the old magic. But what about the prospect of Calum McFarlane, the rookie Chelsea interim manager and former Manchester City youth coach picking up the trophy at the expense of his old employers and arguably the best manager in modern football history in Pep Guardiola? Doesn’t that whet your whistle? 

If Chelsea are to get the job done they’ll have to overturn wretched runs of form, both in the immediate past and in this fixture over the past five years. The last time the Blues won a non-FA Cup game was 12 matches ago against Aston Villa on March 4. Liam Rosenior, remember him? Anyway, Chelsea are also winless in 13 matches against City, losing 10. Their last win? Only the 2021 Champions League final…

2 hours before kickoff. Hello and welcome to The Sporting News’ live coverage of Chelsea vs. Manchester City in the 145th FA Cup final.

Chelsea vs. Man City FA Cup final kick off time

The FA Cup final kicks off in London at 3 p.m. local time.

Here’s how that time translates across some of the major territories:

Chelsea vs. Man City FA Cup final match facts

• The two clubs have met on 182 previous occasions with Chelsea just holding the historic win advantage — 71 to 69.
• However, the Blues haven’t beaten City since the last time they met in a final when Thomas Tuchel won the 2021 Champions League. 
• In the 13 games since, City have won 10, including twice in the FA Cup. 

Chelsea vs. Man City FA Cup final team news

Chelsea

• After deploying a back three for the draw at Liverpool, Calum McFarlane sticks with a similar formation here. 
• Reece James is alongside Moises Caicedo in midfield, with Malo Gusto starting at right wing-back.
• Levi Colwill starts in a remarkable turn of events after missing almost the entire season with an ACL injury. 

Man City

• Pep Guardiola brings back most of his big guns after resting the likes of Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku for the win over Palace. 
• Rodri has not played since the win over Arsenal last month but is in from the start.
• Marc Guehi is free to play because the FA changed its rules at the start of the season, allowing players to play for two clubs in one campaign. He had already featured in Palace’s shock defeat to Macclesfield having captained the Eagles to the trophy 12 months ago.
• Omar Marmoush has scored in City’s past two matches and gets a start.

Chelsea vs. Man City FA Cup final live stream, TV channel

Here is how to watch the match in some of the world’s major regions: