Oleksandr Zinchenko hasn’t failed to impress Pep Guardiola this season, and the youngster most recently played the full 90 minutes at the Amex Stadium, as City beat Brighton 4-1, to clinch the Premier League title.
Zinchenko joined City in 2016 for a mere £1.7million from Russian Club Ufa, and initially found himself down the pecking order at the Etihad.
And after a loan spell in Holland with PSV, the youngster has now made his way through the ranks to become a more prominent figure in City’s star-studded squad.
Zinchenko has played 14 times in the Premier League this season, and while his displays have helped City defend their league title, arguably his best performance this campaign came in the Carabao Cup final against Chelsea in February.
His mature performance at Wembley, at left back, drew well deserved plaudits, and the Ukrainian's versatility and tactical understanding has been invaluable for Guardiola this campaign.
In Benjamin Mendy’s absence, Zinchenko has excelled and when City have deployed four at the back he usually starts.
Watford’s Gerard Deulofeu is expected to start in the FA Cup final clash, and as a product of Barcelona’s academy, he won’t be easy to keep quiet.
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However, with an immaculate Wembley display already under his belt Zinchenko should feel more than confident he can reduce Watford’s attacking threat and stop the tricky Spaniard.
There’s also another reason Watford won’t be wanting to see Zinchenko start on Saturday and that is because he holds an incredible personal record they should fear.
When Zinchenko has played in the Premier League, across 14 occasions, City have never lost.
More importantly, in his 42 appearances in all competitions he has failed to win just twice, the only defeat coming in a Champions League last-16 clash with Basel in 2018.
Watford will be aiming to prevent Zinchenko extending his record if he is to start. However, the odds are stacked against them.
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