Hello and welcome to Telegraph Sport’s live, minute-by-minute coverage of the FA Cup quarter-final between Manchester City and Newcastle United at the Etihad Stadium. When this fixture took place in the league in August, it felt like a heavyweight clash between two Champions League sides. Newcastle had started the season by thumping Aston Villa 5-1 and an injury-hit City had to dig deep to win 1-0 and remind everyone they were still the team to beat.
Seven months later City and Newcastle occupy different worlds. City are going for another Treble, while Newcastle’s season will be over if they lose tonight. They’re 10th in the Premier League and have been allergic to clean sheets ever since Nick Pope dislocated his shoulder in December.
City are huge favourites, even without the injured Ederson and Kevin De Bruyne, but they will treat Newcastle with respect. “This season and the previous one, and the previous one – since Eddie Howe was there and the people from Saudi Arabia took over – they have always been tight games,” said the City manager Pep Guardiola.
Guardiola knows from bitter experience that Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon can hurt them on the break. Gordon should be fit to play despite coming off in the first half of Monday’s defeat at Chelsea. If he does start, he’ll be full of the joys after being called up to the England senior squad for the first time.
“I’m delighted for him,” said his manager Eddie Howe. “I know it’s been a big aim and ambition of his since he was a little boy and he fully deserves it in my opinion. He’s been outstanding this year. “He’s scored goals, created goals, he’s done brilliantly for the team; I’m delighted.”
Kick off is at 5.30pm and we’ll have team news shortly.