YOU wait over 150 years for a Manchester derby in the FA Cup final, then two come along at once.

The 2023 FA Cup final between Manchester City and Manchester United, won 2-1 by City thanks to an Ilkay Gundogan brace, was the first-ever meeting between the two historic clubs at this stage of the tournament.

And they’ll do it all again this year, making it the first repeat of the previous year’s final since 1885 when Blackburn Rovers and Queens Park of Scotland contested back-to-back finals, with Blackburn winning on both occasions.

It’s an unusual scenario, and all the more surprising given the substandard form of Manchester United in recent years.

But despite the club’s general dip in fortunes, United still won the League Cup in 2023 as well as finishing runners-up to City in the FA Cup final in the same year.

It means Erik ten Hag’s time at the club has brought some semblance of success, and at least a challenge for trophies which is a prerequisite for the red side of Manchester.

Many expect that Ten Hag will leave the club after this final, and that a new manager will be at the helm at United for the 2024/25 season, but the Dutchman has been bullish in recent weeks.

This included a speech following the final home game of the season — a 3-2 win against Newcastle — in which he roused the fans and his players as they looked on.

“The season is not over yet,” Ten Hag said on the pitch at Old Trafford.

“First we travel to Brighton where we hope for three points [which they did, winning 2-0], and then we go to Wembley.

“I promise you, those players will give everything, everything, to get that cup. To win the cup and bring it to Old Trafford.”

If Ten Hag does head for the exit door shortly after this final, he would love to do so by defeating local rivals and seemingly unstoppable juggernaut City against the odds in the biggest domestic final.

“It’s all about trophies, and we have a huge opportunity to win a trophy,” Ten Hag said ahead of the game.

“In the last 10 years, there have not been many trophies at this club, but we have an opportunity to win two trophies in two years.”

When asked about the idea of this game possibly being his last for United, Ten Hag added: “I’m just focused on the job I have to do and that is first to win the game on Saturday, and then we have a project, and to keep going in the project.

“I came here to win trophies, and on Saturday we have the next opportunity. We earned this opportunity as a team and now we have to go for it.”

Manchester City, on the other hand, are expected to win every competition in which they are involved, and often do. Last season they won the FA Cup, Premier League, and Champions League treble.

They go into this game having already defended one of those trophies, becoming the first team in the history of English top-flight football to win four league titles back to back.

They were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid, but this weekend have the chance to win a domestic league and cup double.

Since Pep Guardiola joined City in 2016, the club have won 12 of the 23 domestic competitions they have competed in, including six out of eight league titles.

They now have a chance to make it 13 from 24, meaning they will have won more than half the domestic trophies available to them during Guardiola’s time at the helm so far.

“Winning this trophy in 2019 and 2023 were two of the best days I have had as a manager in football,” Guardiola told the FA as part of an interview for Saturday’s FA Cup final matchday programme.

“This is a historic competition and it’s an honour to be involved.

“We will do absolutely everything we can to win this trophy again today and make our fans proud, I can promise you that.”

As fans take the train or the bus or an aeroplane down from Manchester to London for this bank holiday weekend final, both reds and blues will be hoping to return north with bragging rights and another trophy to add to their respective clubs’ already substantial collections.

Though one set of fans will travel down with more hope than expectation, the trip and the Wembley setting will now be familiar to both, as the Manchester Derby takes place on the biggest stage in London once again.