Alejandro Garnacho is preparing to return for Chelsea as they head to Wembley for Saturday’s FA Cup final against Manchester City, casting uncertainty over whether the winger will be fit in time for the match.
Garnacho could make his fourth visit to Wembley for a cup final since breaking into the Manchester United senior team in the 2022/23 season and his third FA Cup final. He has lifted the FA Cup once previously in 2024, and he said plainly: "I love this stadium and it’s always a good feeling to go to Wembley."
Numbers underline his familiarity with the stage. Two years ago he scored the opening goal for Manchester United in the Manchester derby final at Wembley, a moment he has replayed since: "I remember that day – playing at Wembley against Manchester City." The opponents in both of his previous FA Cup finals were Manchester City, and that repeat pairing will frame Saturday’s match in an unusually personal way for Garnacho.
Garnacho put the feeling into sharper relief. "The stadium was full and I scored the first goal. To win the trophy was incredible and a moment I had dreamed about," he said, adding that "A trophy is important for everyone and the FA Cup is really, really nice to win here in England." He also reflected on a career that, from his first senior season, has repeatedly taken him back to Wembley: "From the start of my career, I played there every season. I think that is important."
Behind the buildup, though, is a fitness question. A recent report said Garnacho was racing to be fit for tomorrow’s game after being out for a couple of matches. The same report said his manager indicated in a pre-match press conference that Garnacho could be back on the pitch tomorrow. That timetable would make him available for a match that could be his third FA Cup final and his fourth Wembley cup final visit.
The tension is straightforward. Chelsea have signed a player who has already tasted FA Cup success and who has done his most memorable Wembley work against the side they meet on Saturday. Yet he arrives at this final having missed a couple of matches and needing to prove his fitness in the hours before kick-off. It is a delicate balance: selection choices for the manager, risk of picking a player not fully ready, and Garnacho’s own desire to be part of a different club’s cup history. "Playing another FA Cup final and this time winning with Chelsea, a different club, would be special," he said.
For Chelsea, the immediate prize is clear: an FA Cup trophy and the momentum it brings. For Garnacho, the stakes are personal and public at once — a chance to add another Wembley memory to a short but eventful senior career and to do it against the team that figured in his earliest Wembley triumphs. "Everyone is excited for the FA Cup and it’s a final that is important," he said, and then brought the focus back to the dressing room: "We'll try to do everything right and hopefully we can get another trophy."
If he plays, Garnacho will bring the same history with Wembley that has defined his rise since the 2022/23 season. If he does not, Chelsea will face Manchester City without a player who has already lived and won on this ground. Either way, his fitness — and the manager’s call on it — will be among the match’s sharpest subplots when the teams walk out at Wembley on Saturday.
