...Blues aiming to save tough season with Wembley upset to wreck Pep Guardiola’s domestic treble hopes

Chelsea face Manchester City in the FA Cup final today.

Man City survived a scare in their semi-final tie against Southampton as they fell behind in the 79th minute. However, late goals from Jeremy Doku and Nico Gonzalez completed the comeback.

As such, City remain in the hunt for another domestic treble under Pep Guardiola with the Carabao Cup already in the bag and the Premier League title race potentially set to go down to the wire.

Chelsea, meanwhile, booked their place in today’s showpiece by beating old rivals Leeds in the other semi-final clash.

Enzo Fernandez netted the only goal of the game as the Blues - back under the tutelage of interim head coach Calum McFarlane - ended a difficult week on a positive note and will have the chance to inflict a third straight FA Cup final loss on City.

Date, kick-off time and venue

Chelsea vs Manchester City in the FA Cup final is scheduled for a 3pm BST kick-off today on Saturday May 16, 2026.

The match will take place at Wembley Stadium, in London.

Where to watch Chelsea vs Man City

TV channel: In the UK, the 2025/26 FA Cup final will be televised live on TNT Sports. Build-up coverage starts from 9am BST on TNT Sports 1.

The game will also be televised live and free-to-air on the BBC. Coverage starts from 1pm BST on BBC One.

Live stream: TNT Sports subscribers can also catch the FA Cup final live online via the HBO Max app and website.

The game will be broadcast live and free-to-air on the BBC Sport website, app and BBC iPlayer.

Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog, with expert analysis from Sam Tabuteau at Wembley.

Chelsea vs Man City team news

Chelsea will be without talented youngster Estevao for the FA Cup final after the Brazilian was ruled out for the remainder of the season and now the World Cup with a hamstring injury sustained in the 1-0 loss to Manchester United last month.

Robert Sanchez missed the draw with Liverpool after a nasty clash of heads with Morgan Gibbs-White in the 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest at the start of the month, but McFarlane has confirmed he will be available again at Wembley.

Alejandro Garnacho and Pedro Neto have sat out the last two games with knocks but should be available for selection to boost McFarlane’s attacking options.

Chelsea captain Reece James has recovered from a hamstring injury to potentially lead the side out at Wembley, while Levi Colwill could start once more. Jamie Gittens and Jesse Derry are out.

City have a near clean bill of health ahead of the FA Cup final, with Rodri the only doubt having missed the last five games across all competitions with a groin issue.

The midfielder has returned to training, though Guardiola has not yet been able to confirm his availability.

Erling Haaland, Rayan Cherki and Jeremy Doku are all expected to return to the starting lineup after being rested for the midweek win over Crystal Palace, while James Trafford is set to get the nod in between the posts.

Chelsea vs Man City prediction

Despite dropping points at Everton in what could prove costly in the Premier League title race, City have found their goalscoring touch ahead of the Wembley showpiece which makes it hard to look past them lifting another trophy.

Chelsea were much improved against Leeds and Liverpool - in comparison to recent performances - and could relish being the underdogs in the final, much like they were against Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup last summer.

However, we expect City to have extra motivation from losing successive FA Cup finals and that will prove decisive in completing the second part of a potential domestic treble.

Head to head (h2h) history and results

In the two Premier League meetings this season, City have taken four points from a possible six against Chelsea.

Chelsea wins: 71

Man City wins: 69

Draws: 42

Chelsea vs Man City match odds

Chelsea to lift trophy: 21/10

Man City to lift trophy: 4/11 (The Standard)

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