What Eddie Howe said about Man City after Newcastle defeat - 'They’ve done that for years'

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Manchester City beat Newcastle United 3-1 on Saturday night to qualify for the FA Cup quarter finals.

Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe believes Manchester City are returning to their dominant best after they won 3-1 in the FA Cup fifth round on Saturday night. Harvey Barnes gave Newcastle the lead but they were pegged back 20 minutes later by Savinho's unconventional tap-in.

In the second half, City pulled away from the hosts as Omar Marmoush fired home from close range shortly after the break. The Egypt international then bagged a brace with a stunning long-range effort to seal the victory. Saturday was the fifth time City have played Newcastle this season, with the Blues winning four of those matches.

Reflecting on their latest defeat, Howe praised Pep Guardiola's team. "I think that they [City] made changes to their team but I think you see the strength in depth that they have and they possess," he said. "I think that was probably a step too far for us today against them when they’re in that mood.

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"I thought they were excellent and we fell away in the game. We seemed to lose our energy but they do that to you because they keep the ball so well, they make you run, they make you chase, then you’re tired and you make another technical mistake and you’re chasing again.

"They’ve done that for years. That’s why, for me, they’ve been the best team that we’ve continually faced and today I thought they were in a really good place and we just fell out of energy.

"I don’t think it was necessarily a tactical problem for us, it was more the way they play and how good they are technically. They took a stranglehold of the ball and when we got it back we gave it away too easily, maybe looking too vertical and not horizontal enough at times.

"Then as soon as you make a technical mistake against them you’re not seeing the ball again for long periods and then your energy just drains away. That’s why they’ve been the best team for so long and I think they’re coming back into the type of form that makes them that team again. They’re evolving into a different version of what they’ve been before but very, very effective."

City will discover their FA Cup quarter-final opponents on Monday, March 9, with the tie to be played on the weekend of April 4/5.