The reporter reported coldly The FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium is a microcosm of Manchester City's season from process to result. The same underdogs in London, Manchester City were able to sweep 5-2 in April, but now they are helpless. Even if there was a major misjudgment by Crystal Palace goalkeeper Jordan Henderson for handball from outside the box, and Malmush missed a penalty, City should not have gone from 5-2 to 0-1 and ended a losing season with a trademark defeat.

Before the game, Pep Guardiola declared that he wanted to see off De Bruyne with the trophy. But the cowardly Haaland and the tired De Bruyne could not let this season's Manchester City get this better than nothing consolation prize, so the last fig leaf was ripped off the hegemony of the Premier League in the past eight years.

This is the first time since 2016/17 that Manchester City have 'all four' in the season. It was Pep Guardiola's first season at Manchester City, which was understandable, but this time it was an overnight return to eight years ago, and the first phase of Guardiola's Blue Moon dynasty has officially come to an end.

The finals condensed the season and failed

Long before the FA Cup final, the trophy was considered the last consolation of a losing season by the Manchester City people. Haaland anonymously donated €5,000 to create a huge banner in honour of De Bruyne, but neither superstar contributed to the consolation prize. Haaland did have a chance to score a penalty, but the Norwegian, who had missed three of his seven previous seven penalties this season, cowardly conceded the opportunity to Malmoush. Ferdinand sighed: "[Handicap] is the biggest difference between Haaland and Melo. ”

Manchester City lost not only a trophy, but also a total failure from psychology to tactics, from personnel to adaptation. It is not only Haaland who is cowardly, but also Pep Guardiola, who has been defeated by Glasner's psychological warfare. In April, when Guardiola completed a five-goal comeback with a 4,222 formation after falling behind by two goals at home to Crystal Palace in April, Crystal Palace boss Glasner confronted Guardiola and declared that if Guardiola was still 4,222 in the FA Cup final, he would have enough to deal with it.

Pep Guardiola ultimately opted for a formation without a pure midfielder. Bench B struggled to support himself in the midfield position, while Nico Gonzalez, a midfielder who spent £50 million in the winter window, sat on the bench. Pep Guardiola's paranoia about pass-and-control football led him to fall into the psychological warfare trap of Glasner from the start. As Pep Guardiola said after the game, all 11 of Crystal Palace's players were in the box, leaving City with only more boring and ineffective passes.

Manchester City had three times as many shots and shots on target as their opponents, and even had one penalty to save. But it turns out that the difference between chance and the final score is not just luck, but also clear determination.

Erling Haaland, Doku and Echeverry all squandered chances, and the 40 minutes after Crystal Palace's main centre-back Guehi retired injured and City paid the biggest price for squandering chances, which is the epitome of City's entire losing season. In fact, since the last round of the league was forced into a blank by Southampton, which has already been reduced, fans should be aware that Manchester City has been like this step by step throughout the season, moving towards inevitable defeat in a cycle of ineffective possession and low morale. Ironically, if Nottingham Forest hadn't had the "bad luck" of hitting the post three times in the semi-finals, Manchester City might not even have a chance to fight for the final consolation prize of the season.

After Rodri's serious injury, inefficient passing, confusion and lack of enthusiasm were the norm for the Blues. With 78 per cent possession, Ruben Dias made more successful passes (129) than Crystal Palace as a whole (126), so what's the use? When they lifted the Community Shield at Wembley last August, no one could have predicted that City's form would slip so badly. At Wembley Stadium in May 2025, Manchester City are back to where they started with nothing eight years ago. And if you want to revive the majesty of the giants, it is not as simple as welcoming back Mr. Golden Ball.

The Blue Moon Dynasty came to an abrupt end

With the defeat in the FA Cup final, Manchester City completed the "Big Big Empty" cycle from 2017 to 2025. Between the two "big four" is the golden era of Manchester City's seven years of six Premier League titles and one runner-up, completing the two Grand Slams of England (2018/19) and continental competition (2023).

Manchester City's failed season ended at Wembley Stadium, and it was not just Kevin De Bruyne who was left behind, but also Begiristain, who joined forces with Pep Guardiola to build a blue dynasty. In addition, 34-year-old Gundogan, 31-year-old Kovacic, 30-year-old B and even Grealish, who has proven to be expensive and incompetent, could leave. Pep Guardiola has yet to make a clear statement, but there is no doubt that an era for Manchester City is over and a rebuilding is a must. The Spanish coach will spend two years building a new championship team before retiring. This is the end that he has publicly announced at the beginning of May: because his time at Manchester City is really exhausting and exhausting.

But the suspense left for this failed season is not just a full-scale iteration like it was eight years ago. Pep Guardiola has cited too many injuries as the main reason for a failed season, but Haaland is increasingly becoming a problem. Pep Guardiola has been defending his top scorer: "Haaland won the treble for us and we need him to create scoring chances against teams who are good at defending. However, in three seasons, Haaland has failed to score in eight cup finals, and has missed three of his seven penalties this season, and this time he has put the pressure on Malmush.

Pep Guardiola, who was empty eight years ago, said: "I'm definitely going to do better, this season is a lesson for me. "Eight years later, the four major are empty again, and the beard has turned gray, does Guardiola still have the heart and fighting spirit to build a championship team in the first place?