Chelsea vs. Manchester City prediction, odds, expert picks for FA Cup Final on Saturday, May 16

To the Chelsea fans

I'm not going to hold back on this writeup. I believe with all my heart that Chelsea do not stand a chance in this match. People always say "It's a final, so anything can happen," and that is true -- anything could happen. Ultimately, we are all just trying to predict the future with our bets, but even in a final where anything can happen, I don't think Chelsea have near enough to deal with Manchester City.

Chelsea have been limping to the end of this season, and it's been the ugliest last couple months in recent history for this club. They managed a 1-1 draw to Liverpool last matchday, but before that they've been a punching bag in the Premier League. Even in their 1-0 win over Leeds in the semifinals, they didn't look like the better team and had luck on their side.

Chelsea are without a proper manager, playing a lineup that seems to lack discipline and form, and I don't expect them to finally fix months of problems in a final against one of the best teams on the planet.

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To the Manchester City fans

Manchester City's slip against Everton earlier this month could very well have spelled the end to their title dreams. If Arsenal manage to beat Burnley and Crystal Palace in their last two games, they will be the champions of England. While there's nothing City can do to stop that, they can focus on their own match and do their best to still bring home some silverware for their fans.

Manchester City are clearly prioritizing this final, as in their mid-week match against Crystal Palace, they rested Erling Haaland, Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Cherki, Jeremy Doku and more. This is a team that just beat Palace 3-0 without its best weapons.

I expect City to be hoisting the trophy at the end of 90 minutes. This isn't a hot take, and the -135 ML agrees with it. What is a hot take is I think City win this game easily and that the match will be pretty much over after the first half. I expect a big City victory as they take some title race frustrations out on Chelsea.