Pep Guardiola, without an important starter in the final of the English League Cup against Arsenal

This is due to a rule introduced in this season's FA League Cup which states: “if a player signs for another team after playing the first match of the semi-final stage, he is not entitled to play in the following rounds of the competition with his new team”.

Manchester City, without Marc Guehi in the final of the English League Cup

Marc Guehi was transferred by Manchester City from Crystal Palace on January 19, 2026, for the sum of 23 million euros. Previously, the English international played in the English League Cup for the Eagles.

Manchester City had already played the first semi-final of the competition on January 13, when Pep Guardiola's team prevailed away from St. James Park, score 2-0. The return was won by the “citizens” with a score of 3-1.

Thus, Pep Guardiola will have to improvise in the defensive line, with Marc Guehi, a central defender who quickly made his way into the “first 11”, unavailable for the final at Wembley.

Raised at Chelsea's academy, Marc Guehi did not get to make his debut for the first team of the Londoners, and for a season and a half, the central defender performed at Swansea, in the Championship, where he ticked off 57 matches.

In the summer of 2021, Crystal Palace reached an agreement with Chelsea for the transfer of Guehi, the “eagles” paying 23.3 million euros.

After 4 and a half seasons at “Selhurst Park”, Marc Guehi left Crystal Palace and arrived at Manchester City, the “citizens” paying only 20 million euros in exchange for the English international, considering that his contract with the “eagles” was expiring at the end of this season.