Coventry, a club from the second division of England, starred in one of the most exciting matches of the year and of the last editions of the FA Cup, by coming back from 0-3 against Manchester United, scoring 4-3 at the end of extra time (which They canceled him for a millimetric and very debatable offside) and then fall 4 to 2 on penalties.
Cameroonian goalkeeper André Onana was key in stopping the shots of O’Hare and Sheaf in the definition from twelve steps. Dalot, Eriksen, Bruno Fernández and Højlund scored for United, while Wright and Torp scored for Coventry. Collins stopped Casemiro’s first shot, which initially excited the Albicelestes, while Argentine Alejandro Garnacho had already been replaced in regular time.
The last penalty
The game was going along the usual lines: one of the powerful in the Premier League handled the ball as he pleased, flourished and won 3 to 0 when there were barely 20 minutes left, thanks to the goals of Mc Tominay (at 23), Maguire (at 46) and Bruno Fernández (at 58)
Then it came the heroic reaction of the team that is eighth in the Championship, the English second division. Simms (at 71), O’Hare (eight minutes later) and Wright, from a penalty, at 96.
A break in the game occurred at the end of extra time. There, Coventry scored 4 to 3 and the madness was total for the Albiceleste team. However, the VAR sanctioned a millimeter offside that prevented the most humble team from achieving a transcendent and unforgettable victory.
The annulment of Coventry’s goal
The key moment was the replacement of Alejandro Garnacho, at 65 minutes, which could have cost those in red the elimination. Just six minutes after the Argentine’s departure came Coventry’s first goal, and nothing was the same.
The end, with the COventry footballers crying and applauded by their fans, sums up the heroic of his performance in this competition and in this semi-final.
With this result, agonizing and with an unexpected definition, the FA Cup will have a final dominated by the city of Manchester, since in the other semifinal City beat Chelsea 1-0. That decisive match will be played on May 25 at Wembley.