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Strap yourself in for a Wembley showdown between Manchester City and Arsenal that should be as fascinating on the grass as the sideline where Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta bid to outsmart each other.
City’s manager was the Arsenal No 1’s tutor from 2016-19 when Arteta was his coach. This forged a friendship but there may be fireworks between them after Guardiola was incensed by the Spaniard’s claim he had “all the information” on City after they complained about Arsenal’s “dark arts” tactics in the 2–2 draw at the Etihad Stadium last season.
Expect the spat to be returned to by media inquisitors after City booked a 22nd trip to Wembley under Guardiola in the quest to claim his fifth League Cup. They did so easily, two Omar Marmoush goals and a Tijjani Reijnders strike ending Newcastle’s defence embarrassingly.
Anthony Elanga scored for Eddie Howe’s side but he will be angered at the defensive horror show that cost them. City’s own rearguard remains leaky so if Newcastle were more ruthless, it might have been them in the final for a second successive year.
Howe urged Newcastle to impose themselves early, then saw City score seven minutes in and by the interval the tie was all but finished.
The opener came when Reijnders passed to Marmoush down the left. He veered towards goal and Dan Burn raced across, but when slide tackling the giant defender took the ball, it ricocheted against the Egyptian’s leg and looped over the helpless Newcastle goalkeeper, Aaron Ramsdale, and in.
Guardiola skipped in jubilation as City’s control tightened. Yet immediately the home rearguard was bisected as Anthony Gordon curved the ball left to Joe Willock before James Trafford, running out, killed the danger.
City’s deputy keeper did the same when, this time, Gordon had the chance – Trafford narrowed the angle expertly, a corner was conceded, and Newcastle failed to profit.
Before this Rayan Aït-Nouri had fed Reijnders in on City’s left but the Dutchman blazed wide, and later in a crowded Newcastle penalty area Antoine Semenyo whipped the ball across goal from the right but no teammate could apply a touch.
The contest was open – particularly now as Newcastle needed three goals merely to achieve parity.
Guardiola made four changes from the first-leg win on Tyneside three weeks ago, the big name to miss out being Erling Haaland, though Phil Foden was in the XI for a first time in four games.
The manager’s configuration was a 4-2-2-2 that had Semenyo and Marmoush up top while Howe’s side, featuring six different players from the loss at St James’ Park, played a 3-5-2.
Yet how Newcastle set up was cast as all but superfluous just after the half hour. By then City were 3-0 up on the night, 5-0 overall, and headed for a Wembley date with the Gunners in mid-March.
First the ubiquitous Reijnders passed to Semenyo who crossed from the left: Kieran Trippier hashed his clearance, the ball popped up and Marmoush headed his second.
This was in the 29th minute. Three minutes later Reijnders had registered: the midfielder relayed to Semenyo, this time in Newcastle’s area along the right, he pivoted, the hapless Burn stuck a leg out, inadvertently serving the ball to Reijnders, who stroked home.
Howe’s gameplan was in tatters. A wing-back system is supposed to offer a defensive foundation but if those in the back five underperform, as Burn (twice) and Trippier had, the system is immaterial.
In first-half stoppage time Sven Botman forced Trafford into another save but with Gordon having to be replaced by Harvey Barnes moments before, this was an anguished period for Newcastle.
Yoane Wissa, one of three Newcastle second-half changes, ran through moments after Tony Harrington blew for the restart but the striker scooped wide. The 29-year-old, who replaced Nick Woltemade, was joined by Anthony Elanga – for Willock – and Jacob Murphy, who took over from Lewis Hall as the left wing-back.
Guardiola substituted Nathan Aké for Max Alleyne and when Ramsdale skewered a clearance out for a City throw, this suggested the young defender might not be too busy.
But he did have a coming together with Wissa that had Howe furious when no penalty was awarded, and as Newcastle’s manager complained City moved the ball near Ramsdale’s goal where Reijnders missed a gilded chance, steering wide.
The miss was rued by the 27-year-old, because soon after Elanga slalomed in from the right, beating him, Aït-Nouri and Nico O’Reilly before finding the back of the net off the left post. “We’re going to win 6-5” was regaled by the travelling faithful yet when Barnes scored soon after it seemed more serious until the goal was ruled offside.
Haaland, coming on after 71 minutes, hit a post before drawing a latest blank. But tonight progression was all.
