Manchester City vs Newcastle (Premier League): Match Preview, Team News, Head to Head, How to Watch | OneFootball

Having progressed into the fifth round of the FA Cup on Saturday, Manchester City must now bring their focus back to Premier League action as they host Newcastle.

On Saturday afternoon, Manchester City faced off against League Two side Salford City in the fourth round of the FA Cup at the Etihad Stadium, and rarely looked challenged by their opponents having taken the lead inside six minutes through an Alfie Dorrington own goal.

That isn’t to say that the rest of the match was completely plain sailing though, with James Trafford given the opportunity to showcase his shot stopping abilities on a couple of occasions before Manchester City grabbed their second.

But it would take until the 81st minute for the Blues to fully break Salford’s resolve as Marc Guehi grabbed his first goal in a City shirt, directing Rayan Cherki’s slightly deflected cross into the net and securing a place in the fifth round.

The win takes Manchester City’s unbeaten run to seven matches across all competitions, in a run that has seen them close the gap at the summit of the Premier League table to just four points.

With Arsenal having thrown away a two-goal advantage to drop yet more crucial points to Wolves on Wednesday night, the opportunity is there for Manchester City to pull themselves up to within just two points of the summit.

Up next for Pep Guardiola’s side – for the fourth time this season – is Newcastle United, who come into this one having won their last three matches, correcting their form after going winless in five prior to that.

Newcastle currently sit 10th in the Premier League table – four points off any form of European qualification. For them, as with City, every point counts as they look to climb back up the table.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Manchester City’s clash against Newcastle United on Saturday night!

Match Details

Manchester City host Newcastle United at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday 21 February, with kick-off set for 20:00 (UK).

Match Officials

Thomas Bramall has been selected to officiate the clash on Saturday night, with his last Manchester City match coming back in January and a 1-1 draw with Brighton. This will be just his third time refereeing the Blues.

You can find the full list of match officials for the contest below!

Team News

Having been withdrawn after picking up an injury in the Salford City fixture, Max Alleyne is unlikely to feature this weekend. However, there is nothing to suggest that the injury is in anyway serious, although Pep Guardiola has not offered an update.

Josko Gvardiol remains sidelined with a tibial fracture in his right leg, with an expected return not on the cards until the end of the season, while compatriot Mateo Kovacic is still recovering from surgery on his ankle but is closing in on a return.

Savinho could be in line for selection to the squad this weekend after picking up an injury in January, and while a significant number of minutes is unlikely, do not be shocked to see him on the bench. Jeremy Doku, however, is sidelined.

Erling Haaland was not selected for the Salford City game after being withdrawn at half-time in the clash against Fulham. He was in attendance at that match and appeared to be moving freely though, and Guardiola simply nodded when quizzed on the Norwegian this week.

For Newcastle, Emil Krafth, Bruno Guimaraes, Fabian Schar, and Tino Livramento are all ruled out for this one. While Yoanne Wissa, Sven Botman and Lewis Miley were always likely to be assessed ahead of the game, Eddie Howe was able to issue a more accurate assessment of their fitness processes during his pre-match press conference.

“Better news on Sven, he could be in and around this game,” Howe told reporters on Friday. “I don’t think he’ll (Yoane Wissa) be available tomorrow but I don’t think he’ll be too far off. Maybe the Qarabağ game. It was in training, a nasty knock but I think he’ll be fine.”

Pep Guardiola’s Press Conference Quotes

“70% of the [Manchester City] players are new, so they don’t have experience to live this kind of situation [a Premier League title race].”

“I didn’t speak one second about that [the Premier League title race] with my players. Yesterday and the day before, it’s just Newcastle, Newcastle, and Newcastle. I didn’t talk about the table, I didn’t talk about our position. I could not care less! It’s 12 games [left]… It’s 12 games, it’s an eternity. Many things are going to happen. That’s the only truth I have.”

Head To Head

The two teams have squared off three times this season already, with Manchester City having walked away as winners in both legs of the Carabao Cup semi-final. In the league, it is a different story, as Newcastle took three points with a 2-1 win at St James’ Park.

Since the first time the two teams faced each other back in 1893, Manchester City have won 81 times to Newcastle’s 74, with honours being even on 42 occasions. In the Premier League specifically, City have won 31 of the 48 encounters, with Newcastle winning only  eight.

In the last fixture, Manchester City hosted Newcastle in a 3-1 win courtesy of a brace from Omar Marmoush and a goal from Tijjani Reijnders to seal a place in the final of the Carabao Cup.

This time around, the stakes are just as high with the opportunity to bring first place into touching distance for Pep Guardiola and his title-chasing squad.

Statistics

Manchester City are unbeaten in their last 21 Premier League home games against Newcastle, winning each of the last 16. In English top-flight history, only Everton have had a longer winning home run against an opponent with 22.

Manchester City have won their last six Premier League home games against Newcastle without conceding. In their top-flight history, only against Stoke have they had a longer run of consecutive wins to nil with seven.

Since the 2010-11 season, English managers have taken charge of 76 away Premier League matches at Manchester City – only one has won, with Roy Hodgson leading Crystal Palace to a 3-2 win in December 2018.

Phil Foden could become the second youngest Manchester City player to reach 100 goal involvements at 25y 269d, with Erling Haaland having reached the milestone at 24y 237d.

Eddie Howe previously held the longest 100% losing record for any Premier League manager against a single opponent, losing his first 11 games against Manchester City.

Newcastle is currently chasing their first league “double” (winning home and away in the same season) over Manchester City since the 1983-84 season.

How To Watch

This match will be available to watch on TNT Sports and Discovery+, while audio coverage will be available on TalkSPORT and BBC Radio Manchester.

For viewers in the USA, the match will be available on NBCSN and Peacock.

Check out the full global TV listings HERE!

City Xtra will have full live coverage available on our X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram channels throughout matchday, with content also provided on cityxtra.co.uk!