FA Cup Semi-Final draw: Champions Manchester City face Chelsea, United paired with Coventry

The draw for the semifinals of the FA Cup 2023-24 season was made on Sunday (Mar 17) as four teams learned their fates with a date at Wembley scheduled for April. After some mouth-watering clashes in the quarterfinal, it is Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Coventry that will play in the last four as they look to add more silverware to their ranks. The clashes will be interesting considering they will be played at neutral venues, unlike home advantage for at least one team until the latest round.

FA Cup Semi-Final draw

In the draws made on Sunday, 12-time winners and last season’s runners-up Manchester United got an easy draw after they were paired with 1987 winners Coventry City. Considering the divisional difference United should be favourites to clinch a place in the final. United are currently sixth in the Premier League while Coventry are eighth in the Championship.

This will be the first meeting between Manchester United and Coventry since September 2007, when the Sky Blues won 2-0 at Old Trafford. The last FA Cup meeting between the sides took place in January 1987 as Coventry beat United 1-0 at Old Trafford. Interestingly, Coventry went on to win the FA Cup that season beating then record-holder Tottenham Hotspur in the final.

The other semifinal draw saw eight-time winners Chelsea paired with defending champions Manchester City. Chelsea have a rich history in the competition history and have reached the competition’s semifinal in three of the last four seasons, but ended on the losing side in all. The Chelsea-Manchester City fixture will be the third time these two teams meet this season having twice faced each other in the Premier League.

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Both the Premier League meetings ended in draws with the affair at Stamford Bridge settling at 4-4 while their meeting with Etihad ended 1-1. City will be desperate for further Wembley visits considering they could reach the final of both the FA Cup and the Champions League, both set to be staged at the iconic stadium.

FA Cup showdown

The FA Cup semi-final draw will be played on Saturday 20 April and Sunday 21 April 2024, with winning clubs picking up £1m from the competition prize fund and £500,000 for the losing teams. The final of the FA Cup will be played on Saturday (May 25) with champions Manchester City likely to have a special week. They could play two finals in the same week at Wembley Stadium also there could be a likely repeat of last season’s showdown clash against Manchester United.

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