Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says he is wary of the threat Eberechi Eze posses as his team prepare to take on Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final at Wembley on Saturday afternoon, Afrosport reports.
Eze has been a bright spark for Palace this season and has scored in each of their last four league games, including a brace in a 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur last Sunday.
He also scored in the 3-0 wins over Fulham and Aston Villa in the FA Cup quarter-final and semi-final respectively.
Guardiola, speaking ahead of the game, belives the 26-year-old’s presence will cause problems for his team along with other players like Jean-Philippe Mateta and Senegal winger Ismaila Sarr.
“They are a threat because they have quality. [Jean-Philippe] Mateta is strong and the quality in [Eberechi] Eze is obvious and of course the pace from [Ismaila] Sarr,” the Catalan tactician said.
“Sarr against Aston Villa in the semi-finals they punished them a lot, incredible pace. But not just him, Munoz, [Adam] Wharton is really good holding midfielder who links well inside.
“They are well structured defensively and their set pieces is one of the best in the Premier League. It’s a final. If we play against Palace or Aston Villa it would be the same. It’s a final, we cannot expect anything different.”
Eberechi Eze soars at Wembley
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Meanwhile, Palace boss Oliver Glasner is confident his team can cause an upset against City despite the Citizens being in a good run of form in the league which has seen them edger closer to sealing Champions League football for next season.
“They [Manchester City] are back in shape again. They have had some very good results for the last couple of weeks, players coming back from injury…We have to find the right solution. When we know what they want to do then it’s how we react, but we are still confident that we are able to score a goal,” the Austrian said.
“We want to enjoy this moment. It’s a great time for the club, it’s a great time for all of us, it’s a great time for our fans, having such a successful period at the end of the season.
“We are playing for silverware, that’s not common. I can’t see any reason why we shouldn’t enjoy it.”
Man City will be gunning for a third FA Cup triumph under Guardiola and eighth in their history while Palace will be hoping to win their first title after losing to Manchester United in the 1990 and 2016 finals.
