Manchester City and Liverpool kicked off this weekend's FA Cup quarter-final fixtures, but there was a surprise guest in the stands of the Etihad Stadium
Sir Alex Ferguson being escorted into the Etihad Stadium
Sir Alex Ferguson was in the mood to watch some live football(Image: X/Football on TNT Sports)
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Considering he referred to Manchester City as "noisy neighbours" many would have been surprised to see Sir Alex Ferguson in the stands. The iconic former Manchester United manager was watched the Cityzens' FA Cup quarter-final clash against Liverpool.
It's understood Ferguson took himself to watch the game as he had a hankering for some live football this Easter weekend. With United not in the FA Cup and not playing at Old Trafford until the home clash against Leeds United on April 13, this was the best game Ferguson could see this weekend.
However, considering both sides were two of his biggest rivals, Ferguson would have sternly been a neutral on the blue side of Manchester.
Before the match, he was spotted being escorted into the Etihad Stadium. He had a large smile on his face as he briefly interacted with fans, who would have been rather surprised to see him walking into the ground.
Cheekily, he wore a suit complete with a claret tie, which glowed red at certain angles. Ferguson was not the only multiple Premier League winning manager in the stands.
Pep Guardiola had to watch the game from above as a result of a touch-line ban. He was handed a two-match suspension after accumulating six yellow cards in domestic competitions this season.
He went through all of the emotions in the first half. Guardiola lost his temper completely when City were not given a penalty after Dominik Szoboszlai appeared to bring down Bernardo Silva.
He would have been a happier man when he went into his box seat to get some beverages and food by the time the first half finished. City got a penalty in the 39th minute after Virgil van Dijk scythed down Nico O'Reilly in the penalty area.
Erling Haaland made no mistake from the penalty area, before flicking a fine header into the far corner, finishing off a free-flowing team move involving Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo.
It was the perfect finish to the half for Guardiola's side, who struggled to handle the Merseysiders in the opening 45 minutes. Hugo Ekitike fired a good chance over the bar, while Abdukodir Khusanov did well to get the slightest of touches on the ball, moments before Mohamed Salah shot from close range.
Before the international break, City wrapped up their first trophy of the campaign by beating Arsenal 2-0 in the League Cup final. While they are trailing the Gunners by nine points in the Premier League, a third FA Cup triumph would go some way to easing any title race disappointment.