Manchester City take on the visitors Newcastle in the quarterfinal match of English FA Cup. The match will be played on Saturday, February 16th at Etihad Stadium (Manchester).
Manchester City traditionally sets ambitious goals for themselves. In a sense, the Citizens found themselves in a motivational deadlock in 2023. Under Guardiola, they managed to firmly establish themselves as the undisputed number one force in English football, which has always been considered the most competitive. In 2023, the Sky Blues finally completed their international success by winning their first Champions League. Moreover, they also clinched the domestic double, achieving a classic treble! The only thing that could be better is to immediately repeat this feat. So far, the Englishmen have been confidently progressing in Europe, although they haven't faced top-level opponents. It's enough to remember that in the round of 16, the titleholders brushed aside Copenhagen. In the Premier League, they entered the spring as the pursuers, but against the backdrop of a derby victory, and in a determined style. However, against Liverpool, they only managed to draw, despite opening the scoring, with the Reds clearly seizing the initiative in the second half. In other tournaments, the grand team doesn't exhibit such concentration. Despite victories in the UEFA Super Cup and the Club World Cup, they suffered defeats in the English Super Cup and the League Cup. Pep experimented with the lineup in the current tournament. However, Ake's lone goal helped overcome Tottenham, while Luton was simply too weak.
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Newcastle were good last football year. Eddie Howe finally settled in his new place, and the squad was reinforced with a couple of strong performers. As a result, the team, which had previously been fighting to avoid relegation to the Championship, stayed in the top quartet throughout the Premier League season. And they were rightly rewarded with their first Champions League appearance since the beginning of the century. However, these inexperienced black and whites failed the test, unable to overtake any of the teams in their group, which included Borussia (Dortmund), PSG, and Milan, while expending a lot of energy. As a result, the young coach was even rumored to be facing dismissal, although the situation somewhat improved towards the end of winter. The black and whites don't aim to maintain 4th place, but 6th-7th is quite achievable. However, they were defeated by Chelsea on Monday, albeit with a fight, 2-3. They also perform decently in cup competitions - last season, they reached the final of the League Cup, and this season, they've eliminated quite a few strong opponents.
In the autumn, Howe's charges also faced the Citizens, winning 1-0 in the League Cup. However, in the Premier League format, matches have long ended only with City victories. The Citizens are understandably considered the clear favorites. However, they don't have much strength and motivation for the cup, as the players are thinking about national teams or a short rest. Let's bet on the motivated Magpies, who know how to play in such a format, with a handicap of +2.0 goals.
Prediction for the match: Newcastle to win with +2.0 handicap.
