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Manchester City and Stoke City do battle at Wembley on Saturday in the 2011 FA Cup final.
Stoke are competing in the first FA Cup final of their history, while City are out to end a 35-year drought without major silverware.
City head into their trip to the capital on a high after they secured the coveted prize of a top-four finish on Tuesday, booking their place in the UEFA Champions League next season.
Doubts remain, however, over manager Roberto Mancini's future, despite said achievement, and it has been suggested that the Italian must still secure glory on Saturday or otherwise risk being relieved of his position.
Like City, the Potters, who are assured of Europa League football next term, have their tails up following an impressive scalp of Arsenal last weekend and Stoke's form of late has been very strong.
Different beasts
Tony Pulis' charges have only lost one of their last nine games in all competitions, triumphing in five. The Welshman will undoubtedly be aching to get his hands on only the club's second trophy since they won the League Cup in 1972.
Stoke's progress in recent years has been laudable, no matter how the footballing means at times. Since their promotion to the Premier League in 2008, Pulis has overseen steady progress and has now rewarded the fans with a cup final.
Of course, these are two extremely contrasting clubs, with City an affluent outfit on a rampage to conquer all that lies before them. Stoke's approach, meanwhile, has been more methodical, their spending a drop in the ocean compared to their opponent's.
Nonetheless, Mancini has talked up the threat of Stoke, stating: "Saturday will be harder than (Manchester) United." City overcame the Red Devils in the FA Cup semi-finals, while Stoke hammered Bolton 5-0.
The Italian coach's main selection dilemma hinges on star striker Carlos Tevez, who has played just seven minutes over the last month due to a troublesome hamstring injury.
Should the Argentina international miss out then Mancini still boasts the likes of Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko at his disposal.
Midfielder Gareth Barry (hamstring) has recovered, meaning the only absentees will be Kolo Toure, who remains suspended, and Jerome Boateng (knee).
Pulis is sweating over the availability of key duo Matthew Etherington (hamstring) and Robert Huth (knee). Both players will have late fitness tests having undergone intensive treatment recently.
Goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen, a regular in cup games, is expected to retain his place but Ricardo Fuller, Danny Higginbotham and Mamady Sidibe are ruled out through injury.
Possible starting XIs
Man City: Hart, Richards, Kompany, Lescott, Kolarov, De Jong, Yaya Toure, Milner, Johnson, Silva, Dzeko.
Stoke: Sorensen, Wilkinson, Huth, Shawcross, Wilson, Delap, Whelan, Whitehead, Pennant, Walters, Jones.
Last edited by Scouser_Dave on Sat May 14, 2011 6:27 pm; edited 1 time in total
