FA Cup Semi-Final Betting Tips: Can Coventry cause a famous upset against Man Utd?

Focus turns to Wembley this weekend as the four teams remaining in the FA Cup look to book a place in the final.

Manchester City vs Chelsea

Chelsea make the short trip to Wembley to take on Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-finals on Saturday. The Blues need to be prepared for City’s reaction after losing their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid.

The Form

Manchester City are the holders of the FA Cup and are favourites to lift the trophy once again. Their chances of repeating last season’s treble came to an abrupt end in midweek via a penalty shootout. Pep Guardiola will now be targeting a league and cup double.

Guardiola’s men are unbeaten in their last 26 matches in regulation time. They were dominant against Real Madrid but were unable to win the game before the end of extra time. Pep will have been thrilled with the way his side played. City created a wealth of chances and would likely sink Chelsea with a similar level of performance here.

Chelsea have already drawn twice with Manchester City this season. The 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge was one of the games of the season. They had just 30% possession and had to soak up a lot of pressure in the 1-1 draw at the Etihad. 

The Blues have been spearheaded by Cole Palmer this season. The former City player made the decision to leave the champions in pursuit of first-team football and he has made the most of his new round opportunities. He would love to put on a show here and eliminate his former boss from the cup.

The Runners and the Riders

Some of the Manchester City squad played their part in a gruelling 120 minutes of football midweek. It’s unclear how Pep will change his starting eleven for this one but he doesn’t have any players ruled out with injuries.

The same cannot be said for Chelsea. They will be without Fofana, Lavia, James, Nkunku, Colwill and Ugochukwu. Sterling, Fernandez, Sanchez and Disasi are also unlikely to feature.

Tip

Our tip for this match is for Manchester City to win the match in 90 minutes.  They have been in fine form since the turn of the year and won’t dwell on Wednesday night’s defeat.

City have played 21 matches in 2024 and have scored an average of 2.62 goals per game during that period and won 16.

Guradiola’s side also boasts an exceptional record against Chelsea. They are unbeaten in their eight matches against the Blues since losing the Champions League final against Thomas Tuchel’s side in 2021. During that unbeaten run, they are conceding just 0.63 goals per game.

Chelsea have won just six of their 18 matches away from Stamford Bridge this season. Wembley may be closer to home for Chelsea but City are frequent visitors to the home of English football under Guardiola.

Recommended bet: Manchester City to win at 1.64

Bet Builder Tip

I’m including Manchester City to win in our bet builder tip for this one. The other angle is for Cole Palmer to score at any time in the 90 minutes.

Palmer’s form since making the switch has left many questioning why the champions let him go. He is level with Erling Haaland at the of the Premier League top scorer charts. His average of 0.43 non-penalty goals per 90 minutes played puts him in the 84th percentile when compared with all attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues.

Cole also harbours the responsibility of taking penalties. There were players lining up to snatch the ball away from him in the 6-0 win over Everton but that won’t happen here. Palmer showed he has ice running through his veins when he converted a 95th-minute penalty to earn a 4-4 draw with City earlier in the season. He comes into this one having scored 10 goals in his last five appearances so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him on the scoresheet once again.

Recommended Bet: Manchester City to win & Cole Palmer to score at 7.40

Manchester United vs Coventry

Manchester United are looking to end their poor run of form by securing a place in the FA Cup final this weekend. Coventry are almost out of the play-off picture in the Championship but are capable of causing an upset here.

The Form

Erik Ten Hag’s side have fallen away in the race to qualify for the Champions League. The Dutchman is under increasing pressure with speculation swirling about who INEOS could bring in to replace him this summer. He has his sights set on winning his second trophy in as many seasons at the helm but that may not be enough to keep him in the job.

Performance levels have left a lot to be desired at Old Trafford in this campaign. The warning signs were there when the team were dominated by Wolves in their first match of the season and that trend had continued ever since. The Red Devils to be wide open in defence and the manager hasn’t shown any desire to change things.

Coventry will be relishing this opportunity. There is no pressure on them ahead of the clash and they will have chances to score against the side that have conceded more shots than Sheffield United this season.

The Sky Blues are eight points off sixth in the Championship so a playoff return is extremely unlikely at this stage. A win over Manchester United would give them hope of an unlikely FA Cup triumph.

The Runners and the Riders

Manchester United have been plagued by injuries this season. It’s their defence that’s hardest hit as we approach the final weeks of the campaign. They will be without Martinez, Varane, Lindelof, Evans, Shaw and Malacia for this one. Anthony Martial has previously made an impact in an FA Cup semi-final but he looks to have played his last game for the club.

Coventry have just two absentees. Mark Robins, Coventry manager and former Manchester United player, will be unable to call upon Tatsuhiro Sakamoto and Jamie Allen.

Tip

Coventry may play in the division below but I’m happy to back both teams to score and over 2.5 goals when they take on Manchester United. Their last FA Cup match was a dramatic 3-2 win over Wolves and we should see plenty of goal-mouth action here.

Manchester United’s defensive setup under Erik Ten Hag has come under heavy scrutiny. His decision to press high up the field and maintain a low block in defence means the team concede an obscene amount of shots. They are allowing their opponents to have an average of 21.13 shots per game in 2024.

The Red Devils are also a capable outfit going forward and this frantic approach to the game lends itself nicely to goals. Both teams have scored in United’s last five games and those have seen an average of 4.2 goals.

Recommended bet: Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals at 1.84

Bet Builder Tip

The main betting angle also features in our bet builder. We are also banking on over 12.5 corners in the match.

Manchester United’s willingness to invite pressure has seen them concede a huge amount of corners of late. Their 16 matches in 2024 have seen 14.13 corners per game on average. Their opponents are contributing with 8.50 of those. 

Coventry may be the underdogs but they can make a healthy contribution to a soaring corner count on Sunday as they aim to pull off an upset.

Tip: Both teams to score, over 2.5 goals and over 12.5 corners @ 4.8

Recommended Bets

Back Manchester City to win and Cole Palmer to score anytime @ 7.2
Back BTTS, over 2.5 goals and over 12.5 corners in Man Utd vs Coventry @ 4.8