Two down, one to go. Perhaps it is a sign of the FA Cup’s diminishing status that it seems the least of the trio, perhaps a sign of its historic importance that Pep Guardiola sounded genuinely delighted to win it. “The emotions are so, so special,” he said. For the record, and it can be obscured by much else on a sizeable CV, he is now the only manager to win each of the main English, Spanish and German knockout competitions two times. There was a time when it represented arguably the biggest prize in the domestic game, another when the double was the ultimate achievement. Only four clubs did it in 97 years. In the last 38, nine have: over three decades, more than a quarter of champions have also ended the season with the FA Cup. It is a sign of how a concentration of resources at the top have altered the footballing landscape. Manchester City are an extreme case, even if the man who proved their Wembley match-winner, Ilkay Gundogan, was a £16m bargain. But if the 2023 FA Cup will have a greater significance than most, it is probably for two reasons. This was, in more than 150 years, the first final to double up as a Manchester derby. It may not be the last if City maintain their dominance and Erik ten Hag’s revival of Manchester United proves more than a fleeting affair. Both of these neighbours had arguably underachieved in the competition in the previous decade, even though each had won it once; they had claimed eight League Cups between them in the same time. And there is the importance of the FA Cup as part of a package, as one-third of a potential treble. If City’s legacy and reputation rests in part in the hands of the lawyers, given the 115 charges of breaching Premier League financial regulations, on the field, it depends on the continent. “We have to win the Champions League to be recognised how the team deserves to be,” said Guardiola. The idea is nothing new: the different element is that he has started to admit it as the prospect has grown likelier. Many a City fan would rather win the Premier League than the Champions League but it always felt disingenuous when Guardiola used to argue he would, too. “You have to put the pressure on yourself to be recognised as something good, so you have to win in Europe,” he has now admitted. Europe seems the final frontier for this most European of sides. The most seismic FA Cup – on its own, anyway – in City’s history may forever remain the 2011 tournament that Yaya Toure decided in their favour; it opened the floodgates. Then, there was a novelty value. Now, the distinctions can feel statistical: Gundogan scored the quickest goal in FA Cup final history after a mere 13 seconds. It took a contentious penalty to stop them becoming the first team since 1903 to win the competition without conceding. Their eventual goal difference was 19-1. Riyad Mahrez had delivered the first semi-final hat-trick since Alex Dawson’s in 1958. The fact the Algerian’s treble came against Sheffield United was both indicative and deceptive. “Many times we arrive in the semi-finals,” said Guardiola; they can be their undoing, the proximity of Champions League knockout ties tending to stop them flourishing on all fronts. Yet City finish this season’s competition having knocked out the teams who came second and third in the Premier League and, including Chelsea, three of the supposedly big six. They have beaten five of next season’s top flight even if two of them, Burnley and Sheffield United, had a rather greater focus on promotion. There are signs of how the FA Cup is secured this season. Erling Haaland has scored 52 goals this term but has only found the net in one FA Cup match, even if it did bring him a hat-trick against Burnley. Neither Mahrez, their top scorer in this season’s competition, nor Julian Alvarez, who was tied for second, actually took part in the final. Phil Foden, another of those to get three goals, was limited to a cameo. City’s squad is not as large as is often imagined but they have quality in such depth that their first 18 or so players are outstanding; United could reflect that theirs are perhaps not when they brought Wout Weghorst off the bench. The man who played most minutes in City’s FA Cup campaign was, indirectly, the instigator of that record-breaking goal, Stefan Ortega, whose punt forward led to Gundogan’s wondrous strike. In his own way, the second-choice goalkeeper is a reason for glory, and not merely with his collection of clean sheets. Guardiola’s willingness to pick his reserve goalkeeper has cost him in previous seasons, with Zack Steffen culpable in successive semi-final defeats. Ortega has proved an upgrade, just as City showed defensive resolve when United threatened an equaliser. But it will be Ederson who faces Internazionale, charged with completing the treble, to get the prize City want more than the FA Cup and the recognition that has eluded them Read More Man City’s FA Cup victory provides no clues on how to stop them Ilkay Gundogan, Man City’s master of timing, sets up chance for perfect goodbye Pep Guardiola urges Man City to cement greatness by winning Champions League Elton John joins Manchester City’s FA Cup celebrations Man City vs Man Utd player ratings as Ilkay Gundogan wins FA Cup final Man City’s FA Cup victory provides no clues on how to stop them

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Each time Lionel Messi lined up for a free-kick in his first away game for Inter Miami, thousands of fans packed into a stadium in the searing Texas heat stood and held up their cell phones, ready to record. They all successfully captured footage of history repeating itself. Messi scored another mesmerising free-kick in his third consecutive two-goal game, drawing Inter Miami level before they snatched victory over FC Dallas on penalties to move into the Leagues Cup quarter-final. Messi’s goal in the 85th minute to square things at 4-4 was reminiscent of the game-winner from his Inter Miami debut, both free-kicks from just outside the area in the waning moments, both sneaking past the goalkeeper into the upper corner of the net. This time, the left-footed superstar was stationed to the right of the goal and beat FC Dallas’ Maarten Paes at his near post in the same manner he did from out on the left in a 2-1 win over Mexican club Cruz Azul. “I think there’s not much to say. I think everyone can see,” FC Dallas coach Nico Estevez said. “It’s obvious that for him a free-kick around there is like a penalty for another player. You have to pray that the ball goes out of bounds or he falls in the run-up to kick the ball.” The victory in the round of 16 sent Inter Miami into the Leagues Cup quarter-finals against the winner of Monday night’s contest between Charlotte FC and Houston. The second of Messi’s three consecutive two-goal games came in the first Leagues Cup elimination game, a 3-1 Miami victory over Orlando City that was delayed by an hour and a half because of a torrential rainstorm in Florida. The fifth match in Texas of Messi’s illustrious career had a kick-off temperature of 100 degrees (38 degrees Celsius) on the 14th consecutive day of triple-digit heat in the Dallas area and, because of the high temperatures, teams took a heat break midway through each half. Messi’s first goal outside of Florida for his new U.S. club was another left-footed strike from outside the penalty area in the sixth minute, after a pass from former FC Barcelona teammate Jordi Alba. It was initially disallowed for offside, although this was overturned following a VAR review. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner and World Cup winner for Argentina has scored seven goals in four matches for Inter Miami — all in the Leagues Cup — with every game ending in victory after Inter went winless in nine consecutive MLS matches before the 36-year-old arrived. “We are very glad to be moving on and these types of games help us to continue to develop as a team and fix our mistakes,” Miami coach Gerardo Martino said through an interpreter. “We still have a long way to go to be at the level we want but in the end, I am glad that we obtained the victory.” Come the shootout, Messi converted the first penalty with a leisurely run-up before blasting his effort into the right corner. The difference was Paxton Pomykal firing over the crossbar with FC Dallas’s second spot-kick before Benjamin Cremaschi, who had also scored in the 65th minute, scored the winning penalty as Miami triumphed 5-3 in the shootout. Dallas had gone 4-2 up when Robert Taylor scored an own goal in the 68th minute but Dallas netted an own goal of their own in the 80th minute when Marco Farfan put a header into his net from a Messi cross. Soon after, Taylor had a moment of redemption when he was fouled by Eugene Ansah, setting up Messi for that stunning free-kick that sent the crowd of 19,096 into a frenzy. Miami co-owner David Beckham saw the first one at home 17 days ago. He was here for this one, too, in a stadium where tickets that normally go for about $40 were selling for hundreds of dollars, and in some cases listed for more than $1,000. “To have players like him here will make our players better,” Estevez said of Messi. “When you have to face this kind of level, you have to do better. And you can see FC Dallas today, how some of our players raised their level.” Associated Press Read More Argentina star defends Cristiano Ronaldo tattoo: ‘It’s not anti-Messi’ New Jersey Governor keen to host Premier League and Champions League matches Cole Palmer shows why he become Man City’s missing piece Cole Palmer shows why he become Man City’s missing piece England scrape into Women’s World Cup quarter-finals after penalty shootout drama England stars vow to rally round Lauren James after World Cup sending off