QUAD SQUAD CAN’T HAK IT
Blues ace Ziyech ends City’s hopes of clean sweep
CHELSEA....................... MANCHESTER CITY.... Pep Guardiola was left cursing Quad’s Law as his City side’s bid to land all four trophies in a season hit the skids.
With the Premier League all but won, a Champions League semi-final against PSG beckoning and the Carabao Cup Final against Spurs to come, this FA Cup semi- f inal was another obstacle to be overcome.
In the end it was the one that tripped up City as Hakim Ziyech booked a place in the f inal for Thomas Tuchel’s Blues.
Tuchel , whose side produced a defensive masterclass to stifle City, is the first German coach to reach the FA Cup Final.
He said: “It was a very strong performance. I’m very happy and proud.
“A good defence is also having the ball and ball possession. It is a very good clean sheet.
“We were not lucky to escape with a clean sheet, we worked hard for it.
“It feels fantastic because we were playing the best team in Europe right now and we managed to close the gap for 90 minutes. The guys are ready to cover if anyone loses a duel.
“We wanted to be brave with the ball and against the ball and we did it.”
Ziyech easily turned home Timo Werner’s pass early in the second half to settle a cagey affair.
The Moroccan winger had earlier had a goal disallowed for offside, while Ben Chilwell also wasted an excellent chance to open the scoring for Chelsea.
Ziyech said: “The second half was a bit difficult but we scored the one goal that we needed.
“You always need to have the feeling before the game that you want to score. It was a good delivery and I put it in easy.”
Guardiola made eight changes to the side which beat Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League in midweek, then saw Kevin De Bruyne limp off with an ankle problem.
The City boss said: “It doesn’t look good, Kevin has pain. We will see after he has a test.
“After we conceded the goal we reacted well. The team that defends with eight players in the final third is not easy to face.”