Nico O'Reilly and Omar Marmoush came off the bench to secure Manchester City a 2-1 victory over Bournemouth on Sunday evening, booking their place at Wembley for the FA Cup semi-finals.
Bournemouth made an electric start to the match but could have fell behind as Erling Haaland missed multiple glorious opportunities, including being denied from the penalty spot by Kepa Arrizabalaga, before the Cherries took the lead when Evanilson bundled Justin Kluivert's initial effort over the line.
The second half saw Pep Guardiola's substitutes make a major impact, with O'Reilly first assisting Haaland's equaliser before setting up Marmoush for Man City's second, and as Bournemouth failed to respond, Man City secured their place at Wembley for an FA Cup semi-final clash with Nottingham Forest.
SPORTS MOLE'S VERDICT
Today's clash was certainly a match of two halves, with Bournemouth the better side and deservedly ahead at the break, before Manchester City took complete control in the second half and were ultimately deserving of the victory.
Man City showed a real lack of intensity in the opening 45 minutes, with the constant pressure from the Cherries really disrupting Guardiola's side, but there was a clear shift from the visitors in the second half.
There was more intensity, tenacity and, most importantly, quality from Man City, with substitutes O'Reilly and Marmoush really setting the tempo as the Citizens went on to secure the victory.
While Guardiola will be pleased with their win, Andoni Iraola will be furious with his team's second half performance, failing to match their strong first half showing as they crashed out of the cup.
BOURNEMOUTH VS. MANCHESTER CITY HIGHLIGHTS
Erling Haaland penalty miss vs. Bournemouth (14th min, Bournemouth 0-0 Manchester City)
HAALAND'S PENALTY IS SAVED BY KEPA! ⛔️#ITVFootball | #FACup pic.twitter.com/PqvaHO7iMg
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 30, 2025
Haaland is denied, Arrizabalaga saves from the spot!
Manchester City are given a penalty after Bernardo Silva's chipped pass is blocked by a high arm from Tyler Adams, and Haaland steps up to take the spot kick.
The striker opens up his body to slot the ball into the bottom right corner, but Arrizabalaga brilliantly gets down to his left and saves to deny Haaland.
Evanlison goal vs. Manchester City (21st min, Bournemouth 1-0 Manchester City)
BOURNEMOUTH TAKE THE LEAD! ⚽️
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 30, 2025
It keeps getting better and better for the Cherries 🍒 #ITVFootball | #FACup pic.twitter.com/J5lrGjZK64
Bournemouth take the lead, Evanilson bundles the ball over the line!
A loose pass from Matheus Nunes is intercepted by Lewis Cook and quickly played forward to David Brooks, who chops onto his left foot and stands a delightful cross towards the back post.
Kluivert beats the defender to the cross and pokes the ball across goal, where Evanilson races in to bundle the ball over the line and give the hosts the lead.
Erling Haaland goal vs. Bournemouth (49th min, Bournemouth 1-1 Manchester City)
CITY ARE RIGHT BACK IN THIS ONE! ⚽️
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 30, 2025
Nico O'Reilly puts it on a plate for Haaland and he's not missing those 🍽️#ITVFootball | #FACup pic.twitter.com/W0npKotq1P
Haaland pulls Man City level!
Kevin De Bruyne has possession in the middle of the park and finds O'Reilly on the left side, where the substitute has acres of space to burst forward.
O'Reilly reaches the edge of the box and delivers a perfectly weighted low cross to Haaland at the back post, and the striker makes no mistake this time round, finishing into the near corner.
Omar Marmoush goal vs. Bournemouth (63rd min, Bournemouth 1-2 Manchester City)
AND IT'S THAT MAN MARMOUSH THAT PUTS CITY IN FRONT! ⚽️
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 30, 2025
He's only been on the pitch a couple of minutes...#ITVFootball | #FACup pic.twitter.com/dPHLKkugJh
Man City take the lead, Marmoush just moments after coming on!
Antoine Semenyo fails to take control of a pass intended for O'Reilly, as the Man City defender retakes possession and flicks a pass to Marmoush inside the Bournemouth box.
Marmoush takes a touch to get the ball out of his feet and releases a shot towards goal, and his effort squirms under Arrizabalaga and into the back of the net to give Man City the lead.
MAN OF THE MATCH - NICO O'REILLY
© Imago
O'Reilly came on in a rather unfamiliar left-back position for Man City at half-time, but the midfielder turned full-back was pivotal in their turnaround victory.
The 20-year-old perfectly picked out Haaland at the back post for the equaliser, while his flicked pass to Marmoush also assisted the second, helping Man City march onto the FA Cup semi-finals.
O'Reilly not only impressed in forward areas, with the substitute also making two clearances, one interception, two tackles and winning three duels - marking a superb all-round performance.
BOURNEMOUTH VS. MANCHESTER CITY MATCH STATS
Possession: Bournemouth 36%-64% Manchester City
Shots: Bournemouth 5-17 Manchester City
Shots on target: Bournemouth 2-7 Manchester City
Corners: Bournemouth 2-4 Manchester City
Fouls: Bournemouth 14-12 Manchester City
BEST STATS
Erling Haaland penalties this season:
— StatMuse FC (@statmusefc) March 30, 2025
7 taken
3 missed pic.twitter.com/E5h88QVVJw
21 - Manchester City have conceded the first goal of a match 21 times in all competitions this season - the only Premier League clubs to do so more in 2024-25 are Leicester City (25), Man Utd (22), and Southampton (22). Recurring. pic.twitter.com/sy0zrtoakm
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 30, 2025
3 - Erling Haaland is the first player to score 30+ goals in all competitions in each of his first three seasons while playing for Premier League clubs since Ruud van Nistelrooy for Man Utd from 2001-02 to 2003-04. Guarantee. pic.twitter.com/qemReaDxr7
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 30, 2025
For the second FA Cup game in a row, Nico O'Reilly has been the hero for Man City. 🦸
— Squawka (@Squawka) March 30, 2025
In the fifth round, he scored the equaliser and the winning goal against Plymouth.
In the quarter-final, he came off the bench to assist the equaliser and the winner against Bournemouth.... pic.twitter.com/bBbYzRV6pS
WHAT NEXT?
Manchester City's victory secures their spot at Wembley, where they will face Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup semi-final, with a place in the final against either Aston Villa or Crystal Palace on the line.
As for Bournemouth, their full attention will now turn to their final fixtures in the Premier League, with the Cherries aiming to push into a European place before the end of the campaign.
Ellis Stevens
