In early February, ManCity eliminated Newcastle United from the League Cup, and a month later, they did the same in the FA Cup. While Omar Marmoush impressed, Nick Woltemade showed both strengths and weaknesses in an unfamiliar position.
In the league, the home team had prevailed 2-1 in both matches, a good omen for the Magpies? They pressed extremely high from the start, putting City under enormous pressure. Woltemade was well integrated into the efforts as a number 10, while Thiaw, another German international, started.
As usual in the cup, Pep Guardiola’s visitors put their trust in Trafford rather than Donnarumma in goal, with Haaland not even in the squad. In the 12th minute, Trafford flicked a volleyball-style cross right onto Woltemade’s head, but Nico cleared his header off the line.
The Magpies still deserved the lead a few minutes later: Barnes broke through on the left wing and curled the ball beautifully into the corner (18′). But because NUFC became more careless, lacking sharpness in their passing and tackling, the game turned around.
And in memorable fashion: Doku dribbled past two opponents just before the baseline and sent a sharp cross to the far post. Savinho was standing there, didn’t move an inch, and watched with a grin as the ball bounced off his leg and rolled over the line. A passive way to “score” the equalizer (39′). Manchester also had a number of good chances, for example through the impressive Reijnders (41′).
Woltemade sprinkles misplaced passes in midfield
After the break, the balance of power shifted even further. Newcastle simply forgot about Marmoush twice in or around the penalty area, allowing the former Frankfurt player to score first to make it 2-1 (47′) and then 3-1 (65′) from Matheus Nunes’ assists. A few minutes later, coach Eddie Howe ended Woltemade’s appearance in the playmaker position. After an impressive start, the German had faded over time and made a number of dangerous misplaced passes in midfield. The game had lost its spark: Newcastle no longer seemed to believe they could come back and, as in the League Cup in early February, they were defeated by City in the FA Cup.
Next week, both teams will be back in action in the Champions League round of 16, where they will both face Spanish opponents. Newcastle will host FC Barcelona on Tuesday (9 p.m.), while ManCity will visit Real Madrid the following day (9 p.m.).