The Premier League champion trailed to goals by Joleon Lescott and Edin Dzeko despite dominating chances and possession but got back in the game when Chris Smalling tapped in Ashley Young’s 52nd-minute free kick. Seven minutes later, Nani lifted the ball over goalkeeper Joe Hart to round off a sparkling team move.
The Portugal winger then robbed Vincent Kompany near the halfway line, ran unchallenged into the area and rounded Hart to score.
Lescott was arguably City’s best player at Wembley, blocking a close-range effort by Smalling on the line and deflecting a free kick by Nani past the post before he headed in David Silva’s 38th-minute free kick.
While City’s attacking players were overshadowed by Nani, Ashley Young, Wayne Rooney and Danny Welbeck, central defender Lescott also made a crucial challenge on Rooney in the 69th when United had worked a three-on-two opening.
Argentina forward Sergio Aguero was an unused substitute for City, which had seemed happy to settle for a penalty shootout until Nani’s second goal.
United cleared a corner kick up to halfway and Kompany, the City captain, was beaten by Nani. With the United fans roaring, the winger outpaced his opponent, dodged to the left around Hart and hit the winner.
The game was littered with yellow cards and rash tackles, with Mario Balotelli squaring up to Nemanja Vidic and rolling on the ground claiming injury when he fell attempting to get out of a tackle by Nani.
Dzeko and Anderson were both booked in the first half when they went chest to chest following the striker’s tackle from behind, while City fullback Micah Richards was lucky not to get a red card for a high two-footed lunge on Young on the left corner of the area.
Referee Phil Dowd only booked the defender.
But the 77,169 fans at Wembley were also treated to plenty of entertaining football, most of it from United.
Young, Nani, Rooney and Welbeck — picked to play up front instead of Dimitar Berbatov — combined well without carving open clear openings.
Lescott beat Rio Ferdinand to the ball to make it 1-0 before new United goalkeeper David de Gea was at fault for Dzeko’s goal — allowing the Bosnia striker’s speculative shot from long range to slip over his outstretched hand.
It was only at 2-0 down that United really hurt City.
Manager Alex Ferguson revamped his central defense for the second half, introducing Phil Jones and Jonny Evans for Vidic and Ferdinand, and brought on young midfielder Tom Cleverley for Michael Carrick.
Cleverley was key to the move that was started and finished by Nani, taking a pass from Rooney and slipping it to the Portugal winger to finish from about 6 yards (meters).
De Gea atoned for his error late on when he punched away a goal-bound effort by substitute Adam Johnson, keeping the score at 2-2 and setting the scene for Nani’s winner.
