Can Manchester City win the FA Cup this season?

Blues look to reclaim trophy last won in 2011

Manchester City are one of England’s strongest clubs and always strive to win each and every competition that they are involved in. Manuel Pellegrini’s men are currently top of the Premier League table, while they also look likely to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League.

While these two competitions will be the priority for City this season, a domestic cup run is always welcomed by the fans and will help to ease the pressure on Pellegrini’s shoulders if they slip up in the other tournaments.

It could be argued that City, who last lifted the trophy back in 2011, have been disrespectful to the FA Cup in the last few years but they may opt to take England’s oldest cup competition seriously this campaign.

After January’s embarrassment of losing 2-0 at home to Championship outfit Middlesbrough in last season’s competition, Pellegrini may select a stronger team in the FA Cup this term. While he won’t risk his top stars, City will still have an incredibly tough side throughout the competition.

Realistically, City will be concentrating on the other competitions but will still want to win the FA Cup. The likes of Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero all played pivotal roles in the club’s success back in 2011 and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Pellegrini ask his senior players to offer their advice and guidance to the younger members of the squad.

Despite the likelihood that City will select a weakened side for the duration of the competition, they will attract big interest at UK betting sites like Betway. At the time of writing, Pellegrini’s men are 6/1 to lift the trophy at the end of the tournament.

So, can City win the FA Cup this season? In a word, yes. Of course they can, Pellegrini’s side are one of the strongest and most ruthless attacking teams in the country and they shouldn’t have too much trouble in the early stages of the competition.

If they draw a big name away from home, they may find that tricky but City are equipped to compete against any team in England and would always be confident of their chances. Only time will tell but, with a bit of luck, City stand a great chance of lifting the trophy at the end of the season – even if Pellegrini rests some of his top players throughout the competition.