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ESPN commentator Jon Champion excitedly unfurls a sheet that would probably be long enough to use as one of the flags ultras wave in the stands. It’s inscribed in black, white, red, and blue, scrawled with information that dates back to the 1880s.
“At the moment, it’s about 100 sheets of paper, with various things written on it. Some of these are old commentary sheets that I’m just stealing information from,” Champion grins. “Some are historical stuff about the FA Cup Final as an event. There’s other information about the Manchester Derby because of that element of things.”
Alongside Jim Beglin, Champion will call the 143rd edition of the FA Cup Final on ESPN+. It’s taken a lot of preparation and hours, evident by Champion’s ability to rattle off historical facts and patterns from the match.
“I spent most of today [Wednesday], all of tomorrow [Thursday], and all of Friday,” he continues. “So, it’s a good three days of solid preparation for a game like this.”
Champion, along with over 15 million people across the world, will tune in for another thrilling edition of the FA Cup Final, pitting Manchester City against United for the second time in a row. Last year, City beat United 2-1 in front of a Wembley crowd of 83,000. This year, the result could be different.
It’s a total contrast of styles and results. City, a ball-dominant squad, just won its fourth straight league title and is looking for a double.
United just finished in its lowest league spot and needs the victory to qualify for European competition. United is also leaning toward sacking manager Erik ten Hag, bringing about another overhaul at the club.
How can City win
The question should be ‘How can City not win?’. This Manchester City squad is arguably one of the strongest dynasties to emerge in English soccer if not all of soccer. Despite a shocking penalty loss in the Champions League quarterfinals to Real, they dominated the Premier…
Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/espns-jon-champion-reveals-fa-cup-final-predictions/
Author : Deolu Akingbade
Publish date : 2024-05-24 16:56:13
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