How Manchester United won the FA Cup with a 2-1 victory against Manchester City thanks to Garnacho and Mainoo goals

“In football you, are going to lose games,” Pep Guardiola said last weekend, after seeing his side lift the Premier League title yet again. “You have to choose how you lose games. That’s what defines the best teams.”

Manchester City certainly went down swinging in the second half and got one goal back to set up a tense finale, which saved a lot of face after an uncharacteristic first 45 minutes.

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If history remembers this as Ten Hag’s final game in charge, at least United went out scoring one of the finest goals of his two-season tenure: one that was a symbol of what he has attempted to achieve.

This was Exhibit 1A in how the United manager wants his players to attack: with intensity while initially breaking away, but then composure to finish in the box. That may sound contradictory. It has often looked contradictory, and sometimes totally unsustainable, this season. But when it works, it is thrilling.

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From the opening exchanges, it was clear Manchester United were not going to be trying to dominate the match.

Erik ten Hag was content to allow Manchester City to have the ball but wanted his players to be ready to exploit the opposition’s high line at any given opportunity. The Dutchman wanted to utilise the pace of Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho to run in behind the City defence.

And it worked, time and time again.

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And the overwhelming opinion of the City fans in our matchday discussion (which you can find here) was that a poor first-half performance cost them a chance of lifting the trophy.

Michael G: Too little too late for City. Errors in the first half cost us and A LOT of near misses in the second half. City need to think about moving the team forwards in transfer window. Deep thinking.

Gareth P: Abject first half performance full of individual errors. If De Bruyne, Foden and Bernardo all don’t turn up it’s pretty much impossible.

Today's result means that next season will begin the same way that this one ended, with Manchester City and Manchester United contesting a cup.

The Community Shield will pit the defending Premier League champions against the FA Cup holders.

If City had won today, Arsenal would have featured instead of United as the PL's runners-up.

Erik ten Hag told the BBC after the match that the criticism both he and the team have received from the media this season hasn't been right.

Pep Guardiola was then asked about the future of his counterpart: "They have to take a decision (on his future). I don’t know, but he is lovely person, an extraordinary manager, winning the FA Cup was important for them like it was for us last season."

Jim Ratcliffe, partial owner of Manchester United, has issued a statement in light of his club's victory: “It is a glorious feeling to win the FA Cup final at Wembley. Manchester United clearly were not the favourites to win today but they played with total commitment and skill and overcame one of the great teams in football. We are all very proud of the players and the staff who work tirelessly to support them.”

No mention of the manager...

There is now just one match left in the English domestic season as Southampton and Leeds United meet in tomorrow's Championship play-off final to find out who will take the last place in next season's Premier League.

But today's game marks the end of the trophies for the season and here is who won them.

• FA Cup: Manchester United
• Carabao Cup: Liverpool
• Community Shield: Arsenal
• Premier League: Manchester City
• Championship: Leicester City
• League One: Portsmouth
• League Two: Stockport County
• EFL Trophy: Peterborough United
• FA Trophy: Gateshead

Guardiola was also asked if the winning team were the better team.

"No. They didn't have the chances that we had," he said. "In the second half, we were there all the time.

"United have been a transition team for 10, 20, 30 years. In the first half, we struggled a little bit and in the second half, we were better until we found our moment. We scored a bit late with the chances we had with Erling (Haaland) and Julian (Alvarez).

"In general, it was a good performance considering the final."

Pep Guardiola was asked what he said to his players after the match.

"I congratulated all of them for a fantastic season," he told the BBC.

Then, he gave his brief thoughts on the game.

"We lost the game, congratulations to United," added Guardiola. "It was a tight game and after we conceded the goal and the second half, except the first five or ten minutes, we had the chances.

"We changed our pace up front and overall, it was a really good performance considering the final."

Today's loss for Manchester City brings an end to their 35-match unbeaten streak in all competitions (their Champions League penalty shootout defeat to Real Madrid counts as a draw).

Their unbeaten run was the second-longest run by a top-flight club in English football history, after Nottingham Forest’s streak of 40 matches in 1978.

Diogo Dalot emphasised how, despite today's being a top performance, he and his team-mates have not stuck to the club's high standards throughout the season.

"It was the best way to approach this game," he told the BBC. "The mentality that we showed, the hard work, the resilience.

"I could say it was the best game of the season in terms of being complete as a team. You could feel inside the dressing rom before the game that we really wanted to win this game.

"But, again, this is the standard of this club, it has to be every single game, every single competition. I know it was a tough season but it feels good to end (the season) like this with a trophy."

The greatest impact of missing out on European football is the effect it has on a club's finances.

And, having already missed out on the Champions League, United needed to make it into the Europa League — and they have.

We've put together a comprehensive explanation on how the club's finances are affected by European qualification towards the end of the season — check it out below.

Rodri's incredible unbeaten streak has come to an end. Before today's game, he had gone 74 straight matches in all competitions without suffering a defeat.