Manchester City vs Newcastle (Carabao Cup Semi-Final Second Leg): Match Preview, Team News, Head to Head, How to Watch | OneFootball

Manchester City turn attentions to the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie on Wednesday as they look to make use of a 2-0 lead going into the clash with Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium.

The Blues can still feel the familiar sting of a Tottenham Hotspur disappointment after they succumbed to a second-half rejuvenation from Thomas Frank’s side on Sunday afternoon in North London.

It was Rayan Cherki who gracefully swept City into the lead just 11 minutes into the contest, extending his sparkling form for the club before dancing through a sea of white in the box to force a fantastic reaction save by Guglielmo Vicario.

Manchester City continued to pile on the pressure as Rodri latched on to a hospital ball out from the Tottenham backline to slip through Bernardo Silva, who snuck through man of the moment Antoine Semenyo to double the lead.

But as was the common trope of last season, an advantage at the break was not enough to walk away with all three points. Enter Dominic Solanke and a contentious first goal which looked to bypass VAR, followed by a sensational scorpion-kick finish.

Now, Manchester City face the visit of Newcastle United on home soil in a bid to secure the chance to win silverware with a trip to Wembley at the first time of asking since the FA Cup final defeat to Crystal Palace last May.

The Blues go into this one with a strong advantage, having come away from St.James’ Park in January with a 0-2 victory thanks to Antoine Semenyo followed by Rayan Cherki’s sealer at the death.

The Magpies have struggled domestically of late with a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Liverpool and a 0-2 home loss to Aston Villa, but will be raring to right their wrongs and overturn Manchester City’s advantage in what would be a historic semi-final tie.

This match could play as the foothold the Blues need to kick on and take the confidence of a cup final appearance into their stride, and here is all you need to know about Wednesday night’s cup clash against Newcastle United!

Match Details

Manchester City welcome Newcastle United to the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday 4th February, with kick-off scheduled for 20:00 GMT.

Match Officials

Tony Harrington dons the whistle and takes charge of this affair between Manchester City and Newcastle United, the English Football League have confirmed, with his last clash involving the Sky Blues being a 2-0 home victory over Everton in October.

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

Team News

Despite the exciting news of Ruben Dias’ return to first-team training on Monday, the Portuguese defender is likely to remain part of Manchester City’s unavailability list in accordance with a desire to be part of the matchday squad that visits Anfield on Sunday.

Dias joins fellow centre-backs John Stones and Josko Gvardiol, with the latter’s fractured tibia expected to keep him out until the end of the ongoing season.

Jeremy Doku also remains out of the squad following a calf problem picked up in Manchester City’s Champions League win over Galatasaray last week, while Savinho and Mateo Kovacic continue to nurse respective problems.

As for the visitors Newcastle, Eddie Howe confirmed that a trio of Bruno Guimarães, Joelinton, and Lewis Miley will all missing for Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium, while Sven Botman is available to play.

Pep Guardiola’s Press Conference Quotes

“We have the chance to make our fifth final in 10 years in the Carabao Cup… Starting to play finals is really good for most of them [new players], and it will be so important for the club and for everyone.”

“It’s the reality that in the second-half we drop what we got in the first, maybe because it’s a young team, a younger side than in 10 years, and maybe we need to live it. Maybe we stop trying to do what we’ve done in first-halves. We have to grow.”

On Marc Guehi being ineligible in the Carabao Cup: “OK. Play another one.”

Rayan Cherki sustained a “knock” against Tottenham and an assessment will be made on his fitness today, says Pep Guardiola, while Jeremy Doku remains unavailable and Ruben Dias returned to training on Monday.

Head to Head

Last time out at Newcastle, the Blues steamed to a 0-2 lead in the first-leg of this Carabao Cup last-four tie, thanks to goals from Antoine Semenyo and Rayan Cherki, after VAR controversially ruled out a third for the Blues and a second for the Ghanaian.

Manchester City have won 80 of the 196 meetings between these two sides, while the Magpies sit closely on 74 wins, with 42 draws in the 133-year history of this fixture.

The last time Newcastle toppled City at the Etihad stadium was in this competition back in October 2014, when a serious injury to David Silva opened it up for Rolando Aarons and Moussa Sissoko to guide the Magpies into the fifth round.

A notable match between these two sides at the home of the Blues is another throwback to Manuel Pellegrini’s tenure when in October 2015, Steve McClaren’s side succumbed to a 6-1 drubbing, with star man Sergio Aguero famously clinching fove goals in a marvellous second-half performance.

Statistics

Manchester City have won all of their last 11 home clashes with Newcastle, who have in that time managed just three goals against the Blues at the Etihad Stadium; the last netted by DeAndre Yedlin in September 2018.

Newcastle United have beaten Manchester City just four times out of the last 39 meetings, giving the latter a relative win rate of 77 per cent, with 30 wins.

Manchester City are the only team in the Carabao Cup thus far to have won every match in normal time, leaving them with a 100 per cent win rate, above Cardiff City who boast as runners up with 80 per cent.

The Sky Blues currently have a home points per game ratio of 2.20, and have not lost at the  Etihad Stadium since the visit of Tottenham Hotspur in August this season.

How to Watch

For those in the United Kingdom, this match is available on Sky Sports from 20:00 UK.

For United States-based viewers, the game is available to stream on Paramount+, with action getting underway from 15:00 EST.

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!