Man City and Manchester United's battle for the FA Cup final began with a battle over a hotel.
As was customary, the FA Cup final was held at Wembley Stadium on the outskirts of London, the same venue used for England's home matches. Whenever England played at home, the team stayed at the Grove Hotel in northern Watford, Hertfordshire.
It was a country-house-style hotel built in 1996, right next to the famous Grove Golf Park. Not only did it boast beautiful surroundings, but it was also located in the countryside, far from the bustle of the city, making it a rare vacation retreat.
More importantly, the hotel frequently hosted high-profile guests and had extensive experience, especially with football teams.
From the England national team to club sides, they were all regular guests at the Grove Hotel.
Ever since the Abu Dhabi consortium took over Man City, the team had stayed at this hotel whenever they traveled south for matches near London. Other teams, including Manchester United, did the same.
It offered convenient training facilities, along with various physiotherapy and spa facilities. Everything was well equipped, making it very popular with football teams.
The Guardian revealed that after Man City defeated Arsenal, it had already booked the Grove Hotel in advance.
"Man City made the booking through Darren Hart, the Grove Hotel's sales director. It first reserved fifty rooms, with both sides agreeing that Man City would decide whether to book the entire hotel after taking stock of its needs, specifically for its players, their families, and guests invited by the club."
The problem lay with sales director Darren Hart. When he took Man City's booking, he had used his own name.
"Two days later, Man City received a call from Darren Hart. During the call, the Grove Hotel's sales director