City Thrash the Toon Army

When you say massacre, or dominate, or command, sometimes those words aren’t hugely truthful. However, there was nothing untruthful about the complete annihilation Newcastle United suffered at the hands of a phenomenal Manchester City performance.


Newcastle continued their awful away form with a dismal performance on a sunny afternoon at the Etihad Stadium.
Many thought that the game might’ve gone either way, due to Newcastle’s need for points to clear them from relegation, and Man City’s unofficial acceptance of the Premier League title being out of their reach.
It was to be a battle between two very similar but also very different players: Man City midfield general Yaya Toure and Newcastle transfer bargain Moussa Sissoko. Toure has a natural ability to change a game with a snap of his fingers, while Moussa Sissoko has proved himself as the shining beacon of light Newcastle need to stay clear of relegation. The winner between these two was surely going to have a large impact on the game.

The game started at a very high pace, with Man City and Newcastle players alike being closed down quickly when gaining possession of the ball. Slowly, but steadily, Man City were getting more and more of the ball, and soon Newcastle were pegged back in their own half, constantly defending.
A particular concern was Newcastle’s fullbacks; Jonas Gutierrez playing out of position, and Danny Simpson making a rare appearance since the January arrival of Mathieu Debuchy. Each of them up against either Samir Nasir or David Silva meant that Newcastle fans would’ve got goosebumps every time Man City attacked down the flanks.
Man City took full advantage of this, and many of their attacks were in fact out wide, with fullbacks Pablo Zabaleta and Gael Clichy helping out their winger counterparts as much as possible.
Newcastle attacks were rare, and whenever they occurred, Papiss Demba Cisse found himself with no midfield support, as Moussa Sissoko was so busy trying to mark Yaya Toure.
Try as City did, they could’t find an opening. Newcastle’s defense held strong, which some of you may find surprising. One of the best chances fell to Gareth Barry, who could’t seem to find the composure nor the accuracy to convert into an open net. But other than that, chances were scarce.
Manchester City found the back of the net with four minutes of normal time left of the half. Nice work by David Silva down the left allowed Clichy to put in the low cross that was met by Tevez at the far post. Newcastle’s fullback problems were taken advantage of. Gutierrez was nowhere.
City weren’t finished. They wanted another. Bosnian forward Edin Dzeko had a poke towards goal denied by stand-in goalkeeper Rob Elliot, shorty after the goal.
City soon found a second. Two minutes into added time, Sliva found space on the left and hammered a shot into the bottom far corner. No keeper could’ve saved it. Two goals so close to one another meant Newcastle were shellshocked.

So the second half began. Newcastle had a job on their hands, and try to do it they did. They had more possession than they had before, and their players kept on attempting to test Hart, especially Yoan Cabaye, who had a few shots himself.
But, soon enough, City resumed the possession they had so much of in the first half. Newcastle were pinned back yet again in their own half. They shortly found a third goal in returning-from-injury Vincent Company, with a clever flick off a Gareth Barry shot in the 57th minute. 3-0. Game over. Newcastle had made this too easy for City.
And City kept on pressing. They had a point to prove. The title might’ve been out of reach, but they wanted to show they were just as good as their Manchester rivals, and show that they did.
The next ten minutes was just pure enjoyment for City. It was just too easy. They were toying with Newcastle. It was no surprise when Yaya Toure powered his way through the Newcastle defense and found the net from a tight angle. You just had to feel sorry for Rob Elliot. Despite the four goals, he had been brilliant. 4-0. 70 minutes gone. Newcastle could only try to stop the deficit from increasing.
Substitutes Sergio Aguero and Scott Sinclair were brought on just to secure the win. Sinclair also had a swerving long-range effort saved by Elliot.
The final whistle blew, but the Newcastle fans were faithful till the last. Credit to them.
So a second consecutive Premier League loss for Newcastle, but, more importantly, it was a day where City proved that United winning the title didn’t reduce them as a team; it improved them.

Leander Winden (@LeanderWinden)