Four FA Cup games coming this weekend but which one will provide us the magic of the cup?

Manchester City host Newcastle United in the quarter finals of the FA Cup with a Wembley date on the horizon. Having played Newcastle United three times this season, will City continue their winning ways against the Toon?

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Starting Point - Eight Teams Remain

Notable Injuries:

• Manchester City: Jack Grealish could make a surprise return to the bench against Newcastle but likely won’t see minutes until Arsenal (A). Ederson to miss the game through a thigh injury.

• Newcastle United: Could be without Antony Gordon (knee) and Dan Burn (knock) with both facing late fitness checks. Harvey Barnes (hamstring), Kieran Trippier (calf), Nick Pope (shoulder), Callum Wilson (pectoral), Joelinton (thigh), Sandro Tonali (suspended) and Joe White (cup-tied) all will be unavailable for selection.

Interesting Stats:

• Newcastle knocked Man City out of the EFL Cup in September. The last team to eliminate them from both domestic cups in the same season was Tottenham in 1992-93.

• Erling Haaland has scored eight FA Cup goals since joining Manchester City, those coming in two games. Hat-trick against Burnley last season and five against Luton Town in the last round.

• Manchester City vs Newcastle United 2023/24:

  • 19th August: Man City (Alvarez) 1 - 0 Newcastle United

  • 27th September: Newcastle United (Isak) 1 - 0 Man City

  • 13th January: Newcastle United (Isak, Gordon) 2 - 3 Man City (B. Silva, D. De Bruyne, O. Bobb)

Manchester City vs Newcastle United Preview

FA CUP

General Thoughts:

• The spreadsheet I have put together on the players minutes in the season is linked here. Lately Guardiola has rotated most of the team, Haaland one of the least but given his injury earlier on and the run-in now coming up, he will start nearly all the remaining games. Foden has had a few games on the bench, Rodri a couple and the defenders mostly the same. I wonder if this is the best opportunity to give Bernardo one more rest before the run in.

• I do think we are now past the point of any major rotation, even if we were to beat Real Madrid away 4-0 Guardiola wouldn’t take risks at home. Instead it will be a couple key figures depending on how soon the next game is. The team have had six days since Liverpool and a couple weeks before the Arsenal game after this fixture.

• Ortega in for Ederson should not be any cause for concern, there is a reason why most of us City fans expect him to leave in the summer. He’s good enough to be a number one at nearly all Premier League clubs.

• Jeremy Doku and Gvardiol I expect to line up on the left side, keeping Ake for the Arsenal game. Building on his substitute appearance against Liverpool, Doku will want to impress before Grealish returns to fight for the LW spot. The two of them will have Almiron and Livramento to contend with. A full back I rate quite highly and could cause us problem if their are not all in sync.

• Akanji I think will miss this one out, likely to play both international fixtures and will be needed in the run-in games afterwards. Dias to get his place back in the starting line up. Only way I see Akanji starting is if Guardiola wants to rest Stones.

• Walker on the bench for Copenhagen then back for Newcastle. Prefers to play consistently and could be up against Gordon (if fit). A challenge he will relish since the away game mistakes.

• With De Bruyne out of this game, Foden will be needed for his creativity in the middle of the pitch along with his shooting threat edge of the area. Foden has been on the bench in two of the last four games for City, not likely to miss many more now in the run in.

• Matheus Nunes to start out wide, needing him to take a few touches against a Newcastle team that will press and leave space for him to exploit. Along with Kovacic, their ability to carry the ball past a player and get into space will be key.

• There are two sides to the graphic included below. One is how Newcastle scored goals out of very little, City were for the most part on top and in control of the game. The other side is how dangerous they can be despite looking out of the game, City will need to remember that when feeling like they are on top this afternoon.
  
  Final point to make is how long it took City to regain control of the match, the flow is all in their direction for most of the first half but once the goals go in, City struggled to settle it back down.

Opposition Setup:

Here is how Newcastle United lined up in their most recent Premier League game against Chelsea, losing 3-2. Anthony Gordon and Dan Burn both doubts for the game but besides that the line up should be quite similar given the break between the last match.

I wanted to just go back to the previous game against Newcastle in the Premier League and highlight the two goals City conceded. Both come from duels lost. Both come from a Newcastle player given the time and space to pick out their pass to space in behind. The first being Bruno Guimaraes putting a ball over the top to Isak and behind Kyle Walker after City lost the ball on the left side. City cannot allow him the time to pick out his passes like this, very good at playing one-two passes centrally to open up room for himself as well.

The second goal comes from Ruben Dias losing a duel on the halfway line, the ball is played back to Dan Burn who then puts the ball in behind for Gordon making the run. Losing duels, giving players time and our space in behind gets exploited.

Kyle Walker ending up as a spare man, pushing into the midfield doesn’t help him no matter how good he is defending 1v1. In the game this afternoon, Manchester City need to be aggressive in winning their duels and take away any space from the Newcastle midfielders to play passes in behind. Take touches on the ball and not force the attack. Hence my suggestion for Stones, Rodri, Kovacic and Nunes to all start. Doku, Gvardiol & Walker being outlets for a switch. Foden your option on the half turn between the lines. Haaland making runs in behind.

Ones to Watch: 

• Manchester City: Jeremy Doku looked very sharp in the final minutes against Liverpool and should get the pick this weekend.

• Newcastle United: Alexander Isak can feed off scraps to score goals of the highest quality, just as City saw last time at St.James Park. Bruno Guimaraes, who we highlighted here, can fire passes over the top or on the ground through gaps into the space behind City if given the time.

Predicted Lineup: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol, Rodri, Kovacic, Nunes, Foden, Doku, Haaland

Predicted Score: Manchester City 3 - 1 Newcastle United

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