Your 2022 FA Cup Final Predictions Are Here

The month of May is heaven for football fans. The Champions League final, the last weeks of the Premier League, and the FA Cup final. What do they have in common? Liverpool still has a chance to win all of them. Well, figuratively at least. Right now, they’re closest to the FA Cup. In this article, we’ll briefly recap the semi-final matches and talk about both Liverpool and Chelsea’s strengths and weaknesses. These are our 2022 FA Cup final predictions.

Man City and Liverpool gave us one of the most entertaining performances of the season in the FA Cup semis. The Reds advanced with a 3-2 win over their Premier League rivals. There are still many matches until 14 May, however. The most precise predictions will be drawn up shortly before the final of course. Until then, Liverpool has six Premier League fixtures, while Chelsea has seven. Before getting into the predictions let’s take a look at each clubs’ semi-finals performances.

Recap of the FA Cup Semi-Finals

Let’s address the elephant in the room first. City’s primary goalkeeper Ederson was benched for the FA Cup matchup with Liverpool. But this isn’t all. Regulars Dias, Gündogan, De Bruyne, and Mahrez were also on the bench. Riyad Mahrez was also the only substitute for City. Guardiola explained his decisions by saying they’re fighting for all the titles so he’s trying to grant as much rest to his players as possible. Liverpool played more or less their regular squad with their go-to formation, 4-3-3 attacking. The Reds already had a 3-0 lead by the end of the first half, thanks to a Konaté header and a double by Mané. Additionally, there were no substitutions made by either side until the 73rd minute. The city rallied too late as their second goal only came in extra time. This was a nearly identical match statistically that adds great value to the still fresh City-Liverpool rivalry.

If you’ve read our FA Cup semi-finals predictions, you know how experts previewed the matches. Chelsea had over 65% chance of winning the match, which they did, in a beautiful 2-0 game. The Blues have performed beautifully across all competitions this season. Additionally, on a side note, they also gave us the most entertaining matchup of this year’s Champions League so far. Chelsea had the upper hand over Crystal Palace in nearly everything. The only questionable part of their performance is those 16 fouls that led to 15 Palace free kicks. Additionally, The Eagles used a questionable 4-4-2 diamond formation. Why do we think this was a bad decision? The last time they used a 4-4-2 formation was against Chelsea during the first week of the Premier League when they lost 0-3. Chelsea might not win the league this season but they are still a formidable club.

The 2022 FA Cup Final Predictions – A Great Matchup For Football Fans

Let’s talk about Liverpool first, since they’re the favourites according to 888sport and many other sites. As of 20 April, Liverpool only has Firmino on the injury list but he’s expected to return on 21 April after a minor foot injury. The 4-3-3 attacking formation has proven to be more than good for the Reds this season. Combine that with that squad depth and Liverpool has only lost three matches since 14 August, all of them with only a goal difference. Klopp’s side is fighting for glory this season as they’re still in competition for the league, FA Cup, and UCL titles. The two sides have met three times this season so far. First, in the Premier League twice, and both matches ended in draws. Then, in the EFL Cup final where Liverpool could only get the better of their rivals on penalties, with a final score of 11:10.

Since Chelsea has fallen out of both the UCL and the Premier League title race, they should focus on the FA Cup first and foremost. If you look at the Blues’ season, it’s clear that they shine the brightest with the 3-4-2-1 formation. Most notably, this is the lineup they’ve used to beat Crystal Palace in the semi-finals. As of late April, left-back Ben Chilwell remains the only player out with an injury. Seeing how both clubs are faring recently, anything can happen in a match that’s nearly a month from now. Ultimately, the final should be more than entertaining. With two draws and a close penalty shootout behind the two clubs, we’re expecting to see another great matchup. Liverpool’s odds are currently 21/20, while Chelsea is not far behind with 5/2. The odds for a draw are 51/20.

This May Will Be One For The History Books

This is Chelsea’s third straight FA Cup final since the 2019-2020 season. Unfortunately for them, they’ve lost the previous two. They’re currently tied for the third most FA Cup titles, having won the cup eight times in fifteen appearances. Comparatively, Liverpool won the cup seven times in fourteen final appearances. Should they win on 14 May, they will tie Chelsea and Tottenham.

As with most matches this season, Liverpool is the favourite according to online gambling sites in the UK. But the difference isn’t that large. A win for the Reds is estimated to be around 48%, and both a tie and a Blues win at around 28%. Of course, numbers do not reflect facts and aren’t always correct. They have more of a guiding role, to provide a picture, an idea about the outcome of an upcoming match.

To summarize everything, these are two great clubs. English football is believed to be the pinnacle of the sport and this matchup will no question be a great representation of that. In any case, keep an eye out for updates on the match and the odds. While the 2022 FA Cup final predictions favour Liverpool by a respectable amount, do not count out Chelsea. 14 May will feature two English giants with two great managers behind them. Either Chelsea seizes the opportunity for the FA Cup or Liverpool will potentially go on to finish with a historical season.

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