You know what they are going to do to you and they do it to you. That is one of the secrets of Manchester City, not to deviate from their script and execute it like a charm. The competition doesn’t matter. Not even the rival. The month of the year doesn’t matter. They go out to play in their own style and don’t move from there. Patience is its science, and quality is its difference. The victim this time was Newcastle, in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup. A Newcastle that had eliminated City a while ago in the League Cup but on this occasion did not have many options. At half-time they were already losing 2-0 with two lucky goals and after two rebounds from the Portuguese Bernardo Silva. In the first match after being paired with Madrid in the Champions League, the citizen team never trembled.
The Etihad was celebrating, as always, because since November 2022 City has not lost a game there, extending its current streak without losing in all competitions to 22 games. Since December, Guardiola’s team has not bit the dust and playing with the solvency that it does, it is difficult to predict when defeat will come.
City did not blame the absences of two main players, such as De Bruyne and goalkeeper Ederson. Between the sticks Ortega, a German of Spanish origin, worked correctly with his feet and produced a sensational hand to prevent Isak from closing the gap. By then Bernardo Silva already had a double (13 and 26).
Foden provided artistic controls, Rodri distributed the game with astonishing confidence and Doku accelerated and ran into the Newcastle goalkeeper on several occasions. Only Håland seemed to be lethargic waiting to catch a ball in the area. But City did not need greater participation from the Norwegian. It was enough for him to move the ball ad nauseam from one side to the other without ever rushing. He lost verticality, yes. But why did he want her, if he was winning and doing well. Defending with the ball while waiting for a gap makes the opponent desperate.
Especially if later, in the final third, the pause becomes rhythm, like when Håland almost scored the third goal with a tight shot. City never tired of attacking, nor of taking control, and when they made a mistake, Newcastle didn’t know how to take advantage of it to finish their counterattacks. At no time was Guardiola’s team in danger of triumph. Add and continue.
