Confirmed Line-Ups: Newcastle United vs Manchester City (FA Cup Fifth Round) | OneFootball

Manchester City are bidding to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals as they travel to a raucous St James’ Park to face Newcastle United on Saturday evening.

The Blues are targeting cup glory as a potential route to silverware this season, with their Premier League title hopes taking a blow on Wednesday night when a 2-2 home draw with Nottingham Forest allowed Arsenal to extend their lead at the top to seven points – albeit with a game in hand still in City’s favour.

Pep Guardiola’s side have already faced Newcastle four times this season, winning three of those encounters including both legs of the Carabao Cup semi-final with an impressive 5-1 aggregate scoreline. Their most recent league meeting ended 2-1 to City at the Etihad Stadium just weeks ago, with Nico O’Reilly netting a brace.

Josko Gvardiol remains ruled out with the tibial fracture he sustained against Chelsea in early January, an injury likely to sideline him for the remainder of the season. Mateo Kovacic has returned to full first-team training of late after recovering from Achilles surgery from November 2025.

O’Reilly was deemed a doubt after picking up an ankle knock against Leeds United last weekend, though Guardiola confirmed on Friday that the 20-year-old “felt better” and a final decision on his availability would be made on the day. With a UEFA Champions League Round of 16 first leg against Real Madrid looming next week, rotation is firmly on the agenda.

For the hosts, Eddie Howe is without a number of key names. Bruno Guimarães, arguably Newcastle’s most influential player, misses out with a hamstring injury, while Fabian Schär (ankle), Emil Krafth (knee) and Lewis Miley (thigh) are all sidelined.

Jacob Ramsey serves a one-match suspension following his controversial red card in Wednesday’s hard-fought 2-1 Premier League win over Manchester United. Valentino Livramento is also unlikely to feature as he continues his hamstring recovery.

On a brighter note, Howe confirmed that Nick Woltemade, absent in midweek through illness, has returned to training and should be available for selection.

Ahead of the 20:00 UK kick-off between Newcastle United and Manchester City on Saturday night, here are the confirmed line-ups from St James’ Park:

Newcastle United

Starting XI: Ramsdale, Trippier, Thiaw, Botman, Hall, Woltemade, Tonali, Willock, Elanga, Osula, Barnes

Substitutes: Pope, Burn, A Murphy, Livramento, Joelinton, Gordon, Murphy, Wissa, Neave

Manchester City

Starting XI: Trafford, Nunes, Khusanov, Stones, Ake, Nico, Reijnders, O’Reilly, Savinho, Doku, Marmoush

Substitutes: Donnarumma, Dias, Cherki, Guehi, Rodri, Silva, Ait-Nouri, Semenyo, Foden