Manchester City Overcome Dogged Stoke to Win FA Cup & First Trophy in 35 Years

After 35 years of waiting, it took just one goal for the light blue half of Manchester to savour the sweet taste of silverware again when they defeated Stoke City 1-0 in the FA Cup final at Wembley.

A 74th-minute Yaya Touré goal secured victory for Man City as they managed to overcome a battling Stoke City side at Wembley, ending the club's 35-year wait for a trophy.

It was the first time since 1976 that the side has stood on the winners podium, a year in which most of the current crop of players hadn't been born yet, but here they stood taking the accolades from their adoring fans, many with tears in their eyes.

In a tense first half, it was City that looked the more comfortable in front of the Wembley crowd with efforts from Tevez, Toure and Balotelli all coming close in the opening stages, but as the game wore on, Stoke managed to force themselves into the running.

Chances for Stoke's Kenwyne Jones and City's David Silva were also squandered, as both teams looked for the opener, but as the half time whistle shrilled round the stadium, both sets of players took to the changing areas with the score all square.

The second half started in much the same vein as the first had ended, with Silva wasting another City chance, as did Stoke's Jones in the other goal area. 

However, it was Yaya Touré who eventually broke the deadlock, with a goal that was ultimately to be the winner just 16 minutes before the end when he fired in a rebounded ball after a six-yard scramble.

City boss Mancini said afterwards, "Stoke are a very strong team and it's very difficult to beat them, but we played very well and deserved to win the game.

"This year was important for us to start to win. In the space of four days, we've qualified for the Champions League, which was our first target, and we won the FA Cup, so we have had two very satisfying moments."

Stoke boss Tony Pulis added: "We've reached a level over the past few weeks and the biggest disappointment today is that we haven't reached that level again. We've had a great season reaching the FA Cup final, hopefully finishing in the Top Eight and getting into Europe for next season."

Manchester City's 35 Year Wait for Silverware Ends With FA Cup Victory (match highlights)