Manchester City inflict harsh defeat on Newcastle in FA Cup clash

Manchester City's Brazilian midfielder Savinho, wearing the number 26 jersey, celebrated scoring his team's first goal during the English FA Cup fifth-round match against Newcastle United at St James' Park in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, north east England, on March 7, 2026.

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Despite making 10 changes to their starting line-up, Manchester City managed to defeat Newcastle 3-1 and advance to the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday, while Chelsea struggled to overcome 10-man Wrexham.

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Earlier in the day, Premier League leaders Arsenal remained on track for a historic quadruple by defeating third-tier Mansfield 2-1 in their fifth-round tie.

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City coach Pep Guardiola, juggling multiple commitments, made significant changes to his team, with only Matheus Nunes retaining his place from the 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest in midweek.

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Newcastle manager Eddie Howe made four changes to his team, giving match-winner Will Osula a rare start, following their late win against Manchester United in midweek.

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The home side started strongly at St James' Park and took a deserved lead when Harvey Barnes finished smartly after being found by Sandro Tonali.

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City equalized in the 39th minute when Jeremy Doku's ball behind the defence ran all the way to Savinho, who appeared to let the ball bounce off his leg into the net.

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Soon after the restart, City completed the turnaround when Omar Marmoush smashed the ball into the roof of the goal from close range.

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Marmoush then scored his second goal in the 65th minute, putting his team in total control.

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Guardiola utilized his bench, filled with international talent, to refresh the team, who suffered few scares in reaching their ninth FA Cup quarter-final in the past 10 years.

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City, who will face Real Madrid in midweek, remain in the Premier League title hunt but trail Arsenal by seven points after their stumble against Forest.

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Chelsea also advanced to the last eight after a 4-2 win over second-tier Wrexham, who twice took the lead at the Racecourse Ground.

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Hollywood-owned Wrexham, watched by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, went ahead through Sam Smith, but Chelsea drew level courtesy of an own goal shortly before half-time.

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In a breathless second period, Callum Doyle put Wrexham back ahead again in the 78th minute, only for Josh Acheampong to equalize four minutes later.

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The game changed when Wrexham midfielder George Dobson was sent off in stoppage time, and Chelsea winger Alejandro Garnacho volleyed home in the first period of extra time.

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Substitute Joao Pedro's late strike added to the scoreline, securing Chelsea's victory.

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Alejandro Garnacho described the win as "incredible" and one of the hardest games of the season so far, telling the BBC that Chelsea were proud to be in the next round.

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Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson expressed pride in his team's performance, saying they could take "a lot of heart" from the game and showed good aspects of their play.

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Wrexham will now focus on their push for a fourth straight promotion, this time to the Premier League.

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In the first FA Cup match of the day, Eberechi Eze scored the winner as a much-changed Arsenal side defeated League One strugglers Mansfield 2-1.

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Noni Madueke put Arsenal ahead shortly before half-time, only for substitute Will Evans to level soon after the break.

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England forward Eze thumped home midway through the second half to restore Arsenal's lead, minutes after being introduced by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta described the match as a "proper FA Cup game" and credited Mansfield for creating a great atmosphere, telling TNT Sports that it was a difficult game for his team.