Taken from Yahoo:
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Trust your own judgement or consult a learned friend, but Football Manager 2008 for Xbox 360 and PC might just have nailed the FA Cup winners here.
With everyone’s nerves on edge we thought you’d appreciate a spot of FA Cup Semi-Final fun ahead of the weekend. We’re not shy of investigating any means possible to call the results on Saturday and Sunday as Cardiff host Barnsley and West Brom visit Portsmouth respectively. So we approached our friends at Sports Interactive, makers of the Football Manager series, to see what their fine game could predict.
Our experiment here is dead simple, and the results should be close to bullet proof. The PC version of Football Manager 2008 has been given two full weeks to crunch through all the data required to predict both Semi-Final winners, and the team that will ultimately lift the trophy at Wembley.
With only one Premier League team left in the tournament, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the FA Cup winners are by now a foregone conclusion. But we can’t help thinking that Barnsley will have something to say about that.
Anyway, here’s how FM2008 sees the final gripping stages panning out, using mini reports from the in-game action. Read it if you dare…
Cardiff v Barnsley FA Cup Semi Final
First half was incredibly dire with Barnsley seemingly dominating early exchanges with a couple of long shots.
Cardiff's Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has a goal disallowed in the 59th minute due to team-mate being offside.
Barnsley's Martin Devaney is injured in the 53rd minute and is replaced by Diego Leon.
Luke Steele seems to be keeping Hasselbaink and Cardiff at bay single-handed now.
Second half and extra time being edged by Cardiff.
Rob Kozluk gives away a penalty late in extra-time. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink converts from the spot.
Winners: Cardiff!
Portsmouth v West Brom FA Cup Semi Final
Portsmouth's David James has to save from Ishmael Miller in first real chance of the game.
Sylvain Distin brings down West Brom's Ishmael Miller in first half injury time.
Robert Koren scores from the resulting spot-kick.
West Brom lead 1-0 at half-time in a fairly interesting first half. All Pompey's chances are long-shots whereas Ishmael Miller seems to be a constant thorn in the side of the Pompey backline.
Ishmael Miller has a goal disallowed in the 49th minute for pushing David James.
Nwankwo Kanu has a header go just over the bar in the 66th minute.
David James prevents Ishmael Miller from putting the game out of reach yet again.
Nwankwo Kanu pulls Pompey level late on with a slide-rule shot into the bottom corner.
David James saves again from Ishmael Miller very late-on.
Extra-time is pretty much a non-event with few chances for either side.
Match goes to penalties. Muntari surprisingly smashes shot straight at keeper. Greening scores.
Kanu, Miller, Kranjcar, and Bednar all miss their spot kicks.
Diop and Brunt both score theirs.
Glen Johnson misses the decisive penalty and West Brom progress to the final.
Winners: West Brom!
West Brom v Cardiff FA Cup Final
West Brom's Roman Bednar scores early in the 10th minute with a header from a corner.
Cardiff's Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has a long-shot that goes just wide.
Roman Bednar has a hat-trick of chances to get his second of the game.
West Brom lead at the break with Roman Bednar being the only difference between the two sides.
Half chances for both sides at the start of the second half but relatively poor show so far.
Cardiff's Stephen McPhail scores with a speculative long-range free-kick in the 69th minute.
West Brom's Jonathan Greening comes off injured after tackle with McPhail. Zoltan Gera replaces him.
All square at full-time with it being a fairly even, albeit dull game.
Ishmael Miller has a goal disallowed in the 2nd half of Extra Time for straying just offside.
Robert Koren scores from just inside the box with just a few minutes of play remaining.
West Brom win the cup, and considering the pressure they put Cardiff under in extra time, probably deserved.
FA Cup Winners 2008: West Brom!!
Huge thanks to Miles Jacobson, Managing Director of Sports Interactive, for bringing Yahoo! UK readers this gem of a tip-off. Roll on the weekend, and may the best teams win.
I love Football Manager
What you guys think?
