Pep Guardiola reveals why Mateo Kovacic was missing from Manchester City’s squad in the FA Cup Final | OneFootball

Mateo Kovacic was one of the standout absentees from the Manchester City matchday squad in the FA Cup Final against Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon.

The three-in-a-row appearance makers at the final stage of English football’s most iconic cup competition were unable to make it two triumphs in the tournament in the last three seasons, as they fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat to Oliver Glasner’s men.

A resolute defensive showing and clinical ferocity on the counter-attack proved to be the ultimate masterplan to unhinge Manchester City’s own tactical system, as Eberechi Eze fired home from a Daniel Munoz cross in the first-half to separate the two teams.

But matters were only made even more complicated prior to the game even starting, when it was confirmed upon the release of official teamsheets that City would be without one of their stars of the season in Mateo Kovacic – who was absent from the squad entirely.

Speaking to broadcasters ahead of the game at Wembley Stadium, manager Pep Guardiola revealed that due to a lack of full fitness, the decision was taken not to risk Kovacic, particularly with another huge clash on the horizon for the club.

“He doesn’t feel perfect,” Guardiola said of his Croatian midfielder.

“Tuesday we have a game [against Bournemouth in the Premier League], and I don’t want to take a risk,” the City boss added.

Offering further insight on the subject during his post-match press conference, Guardiola also revealed that Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne were deployed as his holding midfielders against Crystal Palace solely due to Kovacic’s absence.

In the event of the Croatian being fully-fit and available to feature under the Wembley arch, the experienced operator would have started for Manchester City, as confirmed by his head coach after the contest.

City will need to recover, refocus and prepare intently for a mammoth clash at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night as they continue their pursuit of a minimum of four points from their remaining two games in order to bank a top-five finish in the Premier League.

Such a finish in the English top-flight table would ensure Manchester City’s place in next season’s UEFA Champions League – a competition that not only has huge implications on the club’s finances, but also their ability to attract the very best talents in this summer’s market.

Among the names being targeted by Manchester City and their sporting director duo of Hugo Viana and Txiki Begiristain are AC Milan’s Tijjani Reijnders and Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz, while new full-backs are also on the agenda for the coming weeks and months.