“The blood never went” – Nico O’Reilly reminds Arsenal of Manchester City’s hunger after Wembley heroics

Wembley Stadium, Sunday evening: a 21-year-old Mancunian with academy pedigree wrote his name into Manchester City folklore and, in the same breath, warned Arsenal that the champions have not relinquished their appetite for the biggest prizes. Nico O’Reilly’s twin headers sealed a 2-0 Carabao Cup final triumph over Mikel Arteta’s side and, more importantly, reignited belief that the Premier League title race is far from finished.

O’Reilly’s first senior cup final could hardly have been scripted better. Twice he eluded Arsenal’s back line to meet pinpoint deliveries, twice the ball thundered beyond the goalkeeper, and twice the City end erupted in recognition of a new hero. The brace delivered Pep Guardiola’s first piece of silverware of the campaign and, in the manager’s words relayed through the player, “a reminder of what this club does best—win when it matters.”

City’s season has been cast as transitional since their Champions League exit to Real Madrid at the Round of 16, yet the domestic slate remains loaded. They sit nine points behind league-leading Arsenal with a match in hand, host the Gunners on 19 April in a contest that could decide the championship, and face Liverpool in an FA Cup quarter-final on 4 April after the international hiatus. O’Reilly, born in Manchester and bred in the City Football Academy, insists the timing of Sunday’s triumph is no accident.

Speaking to CBS Sports Golazo beneath the Wembley arch, the England international delivered a message as direct as his headers: “100 percent. The blood never went, we’ve always smelt blood. We’re confident in ourselves, we know we can do it. They’ve got to come to our place—which is tough to come to as everyone has seen. We smell blood and we’ve got to keep going.”

The comments cut to the heart of a rivalry that has tilted City’s way in recent run-ins. Arsenal’s hopes of an unprecedented quadruple dissolved on the Wembley turf, leaving them to regroup in the league where they still control their fate. O’Reilly, however, believes the psychological impact of defeat in a final cannot be underestimated. “Obviously, it’s a big blow for them. They were going for everything, just as we were before being knocked out of Europe. It does a lot for us—build momentum, just push on now.”

City’s recent Premier League form—consecutive draws with Nottingham Forest and West Ham—had allowed Arsenal to open breathing space at the summit. Yet Guardiola’s squad, twenty of whom now depart for international duty, will return to the CFA with renewed conviction and a trophy already secured. Director of football Hugo Viana, overseeing his first season in post, has targeted a domestic treble to offset European disappointment; the first leg is complete, the second may hinge on April’s Etihad showdown.

For O’Reilly, the pathway from academy prospect to cup-final match-winner is testament to a culture that prizes opportunity. “You dream of days like this,” he said, cradling the trophy. “But dreams are only the start—you’ve got to back them up.” Backing them up, in City’s vernacular, means sustaining the relentless surge that has become their hallmark. Arsenal, forewarned, now await the next chapter.