LOVE him or hate him you can't deny Jose Mourinho knows how to win cup finals.
He has triumphed in 12 of 14 as a coach and his only defeats have been after extra time.
I reckon he'll make it unlucky 13 for Chelsea with victory in today's FA Cup Final at Wembley.
Blues coach Antonio Conte has lost two out of two domestic cup finals – last season's against Arsenal and one with Juventus.
United haven't been as exhilarating as champions Man City or Champions League finalists Liverpool but adding the Cup to a second-place finish will be seen as a decent season for Mourinho.
They finished a distant 19 points adrift of their neighbours but 11 clear of Chelsea and conceded 10 goals fewer than the Londoners.
Mourinho is the big-game expert and this year has won five out of five against top-six rivals including that 3-2 thriller at the Etihad.
On the other hand Conte's side have suffered as they lost 3-1 at home to Spurs, 1-0 at Man City and 2-1 at Old Trafford. They also lost the second leg of their League Cup semi-final to Arsenal but beat a jaded Liverpool 1-0.
It's been a poor campaign for the Italian on the back of a title success and goals have been a huge problem with just 39 hit in the last 26 Premier League games.
United are 9-5 at bet365 to win in 90 minutes and 8-9 at 188BET to lift the trophy.
If you fancy Chelsea you can have 2-1 with William Hill or 21-20 at Betfred over 90 minutes while a draw pays 11-5 at Unibet.
Three of seven final meetings between the clubs have gone to penalties and another here pays 10-3 at betfair while either side to win on spot-kicks pays 10-1 at Sky Bet.
Finals aren't usually a goalfest and this is likely to follow that pattern. Their last meeting finished 1-0 to the Reds and United kept the most clean sheets (19) in the Premier League.
Mourinho loves a 1-0 and that pays 7-1 at Paddy Power while United are 3-1 with BetStars to win to nil.
There is a still a doubt over top scorer Romelu Lukaku so Alexis Sanchez could be the man to look at for a United goal.
The ex-Arsenal star netted one of his three United goals in the 2-1 semi-final win against Spurs and has a brilliant record at Wembley with eight goals in eight appearances.
He is 15-2 at William Hill to break the deadlock and 17-5 at Unibet to score at any time.
Lukaku is 5-2 at William Hill to net and if doesn't start he could make an appearance off the bench.
Opinion is split over the impact of Paul Pogba but there is now the United midfielder raises his game for big occasions. He is 5-1 with William Hill to be named man of the match while Sanchez is 4-1.
Either keeper is 10-1 and it looks as if Thibaut Courtois will play for Chelsea despite Willy Caballero starting in all previous rounds. It's a decent price considering one goalie could be a spot-kick hero.
Recommended Bets
- Man United to lift trophy
- Sanchez to score
- Pogba man of the match
Leagues Tipped: FA Cup
Resident football tipster at Scotland's most read newspaper, the Daily Record, for over 20 years and proud host of one the best betting communities on the web with daily betting tips.
