Manchester City 3-1 (5-1) Newcastle Review

League Cup Semi-Final 2nd Leg

Manchester City are now through to the League Cup Final after beating the holders Newcastle, the 11th cup final the club has reached under Pep Guardiola since 2016, and they’ll take on Arsenal later this year to win it.

Whilst Pep Guardiola has been the manager, Manchester City has faced Arsenal at Wembley on four occasions. Losing the Community Shield on penalties (23/24), losing an FA Cup semi-final (19/20), beating them in the League Cup final (17/18), and losing another FA Cup semi-final (16/17).

With regards to the title race, this match could play an important role in the confidence of either team heading into the run-in. For Manchester City, with so many new players, similar to the 17/18 team, it’s a great opportunity for the new group to win a trophy and take that into future competitions.

If you wanted to go back and revisit the review of the 1st leg, then you can check out the review linked below. 👇

MOTM: OMAR MARMOUSH

Counterpressing from Marmoush against Newcastle was excellent. Makes it tough to drop him moving forward, should he remain clean and consistent in the rest of his game. It wasn’t just in the first half, either; there are examples all the way through to the 90th minute of him working hard to win it back. That sets him apart from the rest of the players in the front line.

Now, if he’s sharp, ruthless with his chances, able to pick out teammates inside the box consistently, and relentless with his runs in behind. He’ll become a must-start every weekend. Adding to the competition for places and rest for others. Marmoush is exactly the player you want to see breathing down the neck of Konate on the weekend.

Notable Stats:

• Rodri has now played 1,000 minutes and James Trafford 900 minutes for Manchester City this season.

• Matheus Nunes (23) has now overtaken Erling Haaland and Ruben Dias as the outfield player this season to complete the most full 90s for the team. In his debut season, 23/24, Nunes only completed seven.

• Nico O'Reilly (2,605) has already played twice the number of minutes he did during the entire 24/25 season (1,240). The same can be said of Abdukodir Khusanov from 684 last season to 1,408 this season.

• Nathan Ake and Abdukodir Khusanov have won 4/4 of the games they've started together as a CB pairing.

Game Stats:

Manchester City 3-1 Newcastle

• xG: 2.22 - 1.33

• Possession: 63.0% - 37.0%

• Penalty Box Shots: 12 - 6

• High Turnovers: 6 - 4

• Interceptions: 10 - 3

• Duels Won: 45 - 41

If you want to stay up-to-date on individual player minutes, back four combinations, underlying numbers, and more, check out the live Google sheet below. 👇

In possession, Manchester City used Nico O’Reilly and Nico Gonzalez as the pivot in front of Ake and Khusanov, although often one of the midfielders would stagger, moving ahead to receive behind the 1st line of the Newcastle block. Both comfortable on the half-turn and dropping into being a 3rd CB. Full-backs providing the width on either side.

Reijnders and Foden are the 10s between the lines. who got plenty of space in the 1st half as Newcastle were caught between when to go man-to-man and when to maintain a +1. Marmoush and Semenyo pinning the defensive line, one on each wide CB, and they swapped sides throughout the game. Also giving you two options to play long into, whether that is to holdup the ball or run in behind.

Nico, O’Reilly and Reijnders are tracking the midfield trio of Newcastle. Foden or Marmoush jumping onto press the wide CBs, depending on which way they moved the ball. From there, the full-back can press the wing-back of Newcastle on that side, and Semenyo can follow up to the CCB of Botman should they play it backwards. Ultimately forcing them into long balls or turnovers.

O. Marmoush 7' 1-0
It doesn't take long for Manchester City to open the scoring. Ake through the lines to Marmoush, one-two with Reijnders, chipping the ball over for him to drive into the box. Semenyo and Marmoush are pinning the Newcastle defenders. Trippier needs to match Ait-Nouri, Botman maintains the +1, and that gives Reijnders the space to get the ball in behind.

From there, he's fortunate in the finish as Dan Burn slides in, taking the shot over the keeper, to open the scoring for Manchester City. But the move leading up to it is well worked. Also good to see Semenyo arriving in the box, as an option for a pass and to follow up the shot. That movement will result in goals across a full season.

O. Marmoush 29' 2-0
Manchester City plays through the high press of Newcastle. Marmoush and Semenyo are pulling two central defenders wide, and by trying to maintain a +1, they leave Foden and Reijnders in space.

Allowing Reijnders to showcase one of his best qualities, carrying the ball, into the final third, drawing in the three Newcastle players, before laying it over to Semenyo.

Semenyo crosses the 6-yard box, which is cleared on the line by Trippier and headed in by Marmoush. Doubling the lead and taking Omar Marmoush to four goals across all competitions.

T. Reijnders 32' 3-0
This time Newcastle goes M2M, Foden comes across to collect the loose ball, finding Reijnders in space as Botman hasn't gotten tight enough. He can then drive into the open space with the ball as Semenyo and Marmoush on either side pushed back the defensive line with their runs to the goal.

Just as Thiaw is getting back, Reijnders lays it off for Semenyo. He cuts inside, and Burn can get a touch on it to take it away, but Reijnders arrives in time to convert the loose ball and make it three.

With 7G 6A across all competitions for Manchester City this season, Tijjani Reijnders has equalled his 2nd best total for goal contributions in a single season. He is now only six behind his total for Milan last season (15G 4A). Per-90, this is the best season of his career.

It could have been four for Manchester City after Reijnders had a shot (38’) from a wide angle saved by Ramsdale, but if he chooses to cross along the 6-yard box, Marmoush was there, free to tap it in.

An excellent sweep by Trafford on Willock, Gordon had a shot inside the box, saved (21’), and Botman had a header saved (45’+2) from a set piece. Not an abundance of chances for Newcastle, but a couple of opportunities that required Trafford to step up. Particularly his management of distance in the sweep against Willock, timing his run out, and then closing down Gordon inside the box, and making himself big. Excellent work, and something he’d have struggled with earlier in the season.

Triple substitution at half-time for Newcastle as Murphy, Elanga, and Wissa came on for Hall, Willock, and Woltemade. Along with Barnes, since Gordon came off injured, Newcastle now had four players all willing to make runs in behind against Manchester City.

Mistakes by Khusanov (46’) and Alleyne, who came on for Ake at half-time, gave early momentum to Newcastle. In the context of debates around how Manchester City have or have not performed in second halves, there is no tactical setup for you to make those mistakes on the ball and always get away with it. At the very least, those moments breath live back into the opposition to continue pushing for a goal. That is all part of managing a game, and why the team has dropped points in the second halves this season.

Great chance for the fourth with Reijnders shot wide (56’), after getting the pass from Marmoush, and flashing it past the near-post.

A. Elanga 62’ 3-1

This was the key moment for Elanga scoring his goal last night. As Trippier creeps back up the line. Ait-Nouri doesn't, and Tijjani Reijnders steps off the gas, expecting the handover. Leaving the space for him to cut inside. Poor from the pair of them. He’s then able to drive into the box, cut onto his left foot, and curl it into the bottom left corner.

Another great chance for Elanga as his shot inside the box goes wide of the post (70’), which could have brought them to 3-2 and begun to turn the game in their favour for the final minutes. It’s just after this chance that Guardiola brings on Cherki, Haaland, and Rodri for Semenyo, Foden, and O’Reilly as he looks to see out and control the final twenty minutes.

Cherki also puts Manchester City on the front foot. Involved in the lead-up to a few excellent chances between Marmoush (80’) and Haaland (82’, 86’) that go missing. The first chance for Haaland was a through ball, splitting the entire Newcastle team, and required a big save from Ramsdale.

Second Half Struggles? 

We saw in the second half the approach of an opposition team that was down by five goals and needed to change something to get back into the game. The addition of all the runners to get in behind and turn up the intensity of their high press. You make two mistakes like Alleyne and Khusanov did at the start of that half, whilst not under pressure, you give the opposition some momentum.

This wasn’t an example of City struggling in the second half to the extent we’ve seen in previous games this season, but a reminder of the simple actions you need to get right to manage the game through the initial push by the opposition in the second half.

This is the lead-up to the chance Barnes had, which was ruled out as offside. Newcastle have added additional runners to attack the defensive line. The confusion from Ait-Nouri in this situation, he doesn’t need to jump and pull the backline across to allow Newcastle to fire at the ball behind, and give Elanga the space to attack the box. Who is the central defender or midfielder telling him to stay put? The academy graduate central defender who came back from loan last month?

On the flipside, I’d imagine Ait-Nouri is jumping with the expectation that Reijnders will drop to cover Elanga. But there is no communication between the two. During the season, those two have started six games together, and only two of those have been after Ait-Nouri came back from AFCON. This is just a little moment that you would have seen throughout the second halves by Manchester City in previous games, that are the mark of a new team. They are not all tied to one player.

We saw against Spurs some chances they generated because the team was not compact and pressing high as a team at the right moment. It was disjointed, not backed up, and once they found the pass through the 1st line, there were the options to play in behind, running at the Manchester City backline. All Khusanov and Guehi can do in that moment is defend the situation the best they can. But the mistake, the opening, all started with the press being initiated at the wrong moment. That falls on some inexperience for Semenyo, O’Reilly, and Cherki. It falls on experienced players not leading and organising well in Haaland, Silva, and Rodri.

Other mistakes in the second half have been on the ball. In a few different ways. That can be the dribble Cherki did, past three players and passing it back, as Newcastle drop off and Manchester City settle into possession. That was the correct action. But we’ve seen players force the forward pass in this moment and find themselves defending a long ball right after. If you continue to make several of these, you won’t settle into the possession and control the game; it will turn into a basketball match.

Another is the buildup, against the opposition pressing high, and this, as we saw in the second half against Newcastle, is something that has been there for both goalkeepers. You must look at the buildup as a sum of it’s part, and not as something entirely dependent on the goalkeeper.

Now, the goalkeepers could fail to recognise the aggression of the opposition high press, take too long, without a decision already made for their pass, and be rushed into a poor long pass. Trafford did this a few times vs Newcastle. It was a big mistake by Donnarumma vs Spurs. You give the forwards little chance to hold up the ball, and that attack is coming right back at you.

Do the forward players make enough movement to open up a passing option for the keeper? It extends to when those long balls are delivered well. Are you able to consistently hold up the ball, relieve the pressure, and progress your team up the pitch? All of the attacking players have been guilty of this mistake throughout the season.

If we’re playing short, through the high press, are the deeper players able to consistently recognise where the spaces are and time their movement to become an available passing option, or, as we’ve seen with teams increasingly going M2M, can you drag opposition players around to open space for others?

You have to live these experiences to grow up and learn the little details. As painful as they are as a fan, in the moment, to watch. It’s a step the team must take if they want to seriously compete at the end of the season, to stamp out these mistakes.

It’s worth adding that despite not finding the winner, the team recovered and pinned back Sunderland in the second half, away from home. They’ve held onto to win away at Real Madrid, Newcastle (LC), and Brentford (PL). We’ve not seen it enough in recent games, but the ability is there to do it. On top of that, is then recovering the experienced players into the team, finding the consistency in selection that only comes by players remaining available.

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Moving Forward

Six points behind Arsenal in the Premier League in February. Through to the League Cup final. Still in the FA Cup. Qualified in the T8 of the Champions League to the R16. All is still to play for, and in all competitions, this has been a step forward for rebuilding Manchester City compared to last season.

On the injured players’ front, there isn’t a set return date for Savinho, but Jeremy Doku is expected to be back around the same time as Newcastle (H) towards the end of February. Ruben Dias was on the bench against Newcastle, so he’ll be back to starting games across the next couple of weeks. Bernardo Silva is a big doubt for Liverpool (A), but he won’t be far behind. John Stones is now back in training.

That is all welcome news, as there is no denying the importance of the next few games in the Premier League. Tough away match against Liverpool to keep up the pace with Arsenal in the title race. Then an opportunity for a winning run as up comes Fulham (H), Newcastle (H), Leeds (A), Forest (H), and West Ham (A). If the team wants to be considered come May, now is the time for the performances to stop coming in moments and become consistent for ninety minutes, back-to-back.

I’ve got no doubts on the quality level in the team; the capacity, and the tools are all there to succeed across all competitions. It’s the application. It’s whether they want to lock in for ninety minutes and have learned their lessons from previous games. That’s what we’re going to find out over the next month.

Tijjani Reijnders was involved in many of the attacks by Manchester City against Newcastle. Along with scoring after his late arrival in the box, 5 chances created. 3/4 shots on target. 2/3 dribbles completed.

Arguably his best game for the club so far this season. Carrying capacity over long distances is very effective if you can create the space to drive into, as the team did tonight, and provide the runners in front. He's consistent in executing the right pass after making that carry.

When you want to exploit the space teams leave by going with a man-to-man press, you need the players capable of attacking those large spaces, and Reijnders has shown those qualities across this season. Short, sharp movement into the box, we’ve seen come through more and more. The involvement deeper in the buildup, and in more settled possession around the final third, is less so. The intensity of the ball, especially pressing high, has been quite mixed at best. Plenty of work in putting all of those parts of his game together, but we’ve seen enough times what Reijnders can bring at his best. That isn’t something our other midfielders can do.

Nico O’Reilly continues to show his value in the midfield. In the first half, he was part of all five most used passing pairs, covered the ground to press high, tracked opposition players, and supported in getting back to put pressure on the ball. Capable of finding players through the lines with his passing, like in the lead-up to the 2nd goal, as well as being the player between the lines, in the final third.

Especially when you look at what the team lacks in midfield, pressing high, and doing the defensive work, without sacrificing quality on the ball, O’Reilly is showing he’s capable of making that step next season. There is some debate about whether Manchester City need to buy one or two midfielders in the summer, but with how O’Reilly has looked here, along with Ait-Nouri in the team and Gvardiol back fit, it’s looking like just one midfielder will be needed. The other will be Nico o’Reilly.

Stephen Mfuni (17) went out on loan, made the bench for the first game, and then made his Watford debut in a 0-0 draw against Hull City. Not an easy place to make a debut, away from home, against a 3rd-in-the-league team on a 4-game winning streak. 3/3 aerial duels won. 1/4 ground duels won. Picked up a yellow for a mistimed tackle, which eventually led to him being taken off early as a precaution.

Aggressively stepping into duels or forward to block a pass. Always with his arms open, asking for the ball. Made a few good progressive actions to carry or pass through the 1st line, plus the switch to the right side, which Watford have lacked since Alleyne departed.

He'll probably be kicking himself for not scoring either, as Mfuni got a couple of good chances off corners. Well-timed runs and leaps, arriving in the 6-yard box. One at the near-post and another at the back-post.

Very little for him to do/be tested with regards to balls in behind, 1v1 in the channels, up against physical strikers, and defending the box.

Promising start, plenty more difficult games to come, but his attitude will carry him through those tougher moments out on loan. Full of confidence despite the huge leap this is for his career.

Another one that headed out on loan is Divine Mukasa (18). He’s developed quite quickly physically, so looks more than ready for this step, compared to some other former academy players coming through. With Marmoush back, Semenyo coming in, and the others expected back from injury shortly, there won't be many minutes on offer, even in the Cup competitions.

There isn't a serious player blocking him from all minutes as an AM, like there could be elsewhere in the Championship. They've got some very talented players in the squad, like Fatawu and Monga. If Lascelles can get and stay fit, that's a good signing for them with the experience he brings.

The main question mark is around the manager they bring in, whether that impacts his minutes, but the league table is very tight, so it won't take much for them to move up it quickly.

Sverre Nypan (19) has rejoined the first-team and was an unused substitute against Newcastle in the League Cup. It’s a shame that it didn't work out. Under Rob Edwards, Nypan played 438 minutes and made 3 starts. Only played 197 minutes and no starts once the new manager, Kim Hellberg, came in. Middlesbrough also joint with Coventry on points at the top of the Championship, which would have played a factor in him not getting a look-in.

When you want to integrate players into English football and keep them in the FA-associated clubs to become home-grown, it's not always easy to find a good spot that can't change overnight.

Still, as we have seen with plenty of other players, the experience can be useful despite not getting the minutes. Especially for someone who's played 50+ games for Rosenborg FK before joining the club. Training with the first-team, properly, across the rest of the season brings its own value. Expect to see some minutes in the next round of the FA Cup against Salford, and then reassess the options in the summer.

If you’re looking for some more content, I put together a thread on each take-on by Semenyo against Spurs last weekend. Not a game he’ll enjoy revisting but quite a clear example of making the same mistakes 1v1 despite getting into a good initial position and having the team to attack the box. 👇

Next up for Manchester City is Liverpool on Sunday, the 8th of February at 16:00 (UK time). Since Pep Guardiola took over, only once has Manchester City beaten Liverpool at Anfield, during the 21/22 season, and if they want to continue to remain in the title race, that’s what is needed.