They lost the two league derbies by a combined 6-1 this season and City had 47 shots compared to just the 10 for Erik ten Hag's side.
The gap was most visible at the Etihad, yet Ten Hag claimed after that game that his team could have won it - they had three shots to City's 27 and were lucky to only lose 3-1.
That was obvious to anyone who watched the game and Ten Hag's comments surely wouldn't have gone down well with Ineos.
They need a significant turnaround at Wembley to even make this FA Cup final competitive.
It is a week when Ten Hag must get his messaging just right. He is correct to flag the unrelenting injury crisis he has had to deal with this season but his gripes with marginal refereeing calls are a see-through attempt to change the narrative. Likewise, his assertion last week that the season hadn't had a turning point didn't ring true.
Wins against Chelsea, Aston Villa and Liverpool all felt like turning points at the time but proved to be false dawns.
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