Manchester City and Newcastle United meet yet again this season as they take each other on in the fifth round of the 2025-26 FA Cup. With City coming off a bruising draw to relegation-fighting Nottingham Forest, a result that saw Arsenal peel away again at the top of the Premier League, and Newcastle coming off a superb result against Manchester United, this could prove a crucial match in directing the momentum of the two sides going into the business end of the season.
Here's everything you need to know about the match:
How to watch
The match will be broadcast on Saturday on TNT Sports 1 in the UK, Peacock in the U.S., Jio Hotstar in India and Stan Sport in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live coverage here.
Key Details
Kick-off time: Saturday, March 7 at 8 p.m. GMT (3 p.m. ET; 1:30 a.m. IST and 7 a.m. AEDT, Wednesday)
Venue: St. James Park, Newcastle
Referee: Sam Barrott
VAR: John Brooks
Injury News
Newcastle United
Emil Krafth, D: OUT, knee
Tino Livramento, D: OUT, hamstring
Bruno Guimarães, M: OUT, muscle
Lewis Miley, D: OUT, knee
Jacob Ramsey, M: OUT, suspended
Nick Woltemade, F: DOUBT, illness
Man City
Josko Gvardiol, D: OUT, ankle
Max Alleyne, D: DOUBT, knock
Mateo Kovacic, M: OUT, ankle
Nico O'Reilly, M/D: DOUBT, knock
Talking Points
Newcastle finally show they can without Bruno
It was one of the most jarring, and impressive stats in the land that Newcastle hadn't won a Premier League game without Bruno Guimarães since the Brazilian signed for the club... But they corrected that with a sensational win over Manchester United on Wednesday.
It was the kind of display that has the potential to kickstart a flagging season: not only was it a win that ended a run of three straight Prem defeats at St. James Park, the fact that they did it with ten men for a whole half would boost their confidence no end.
Haaland's form is now a concern
In his last 15 games across all competitions (since Jan 2026), Erling Haaland has four goals. Over the two-legged Carabao Cup semifinal against Newcastle, he had neither a goal nor an assist. On Wednesday, returning to the XI after missing the Leeds United match with a minor knock, he looked out of sorts against Nottingham Forest.
For City to contend for the titles they want to at the end of the season, Haaland needs to get his early season goalscoring boots back... but Pep Guardiola has a fine line to tread here. If Haaland's fitness is an issue, will back-to-back starts in a few days make it worse for him? Should he be conserved for the blockbuster UEFA Champions League knockout tie against Real Madrid? Or must he simply try and play his ace forward back into form?
Of course, this decision could be made easier because of one stat -- Omar Marmoush has five goals and an assist in four games (all comps) against Newcastle United.
Newcastle have troubled City already this season
The two teams must be sick at the sight of each other: this is now their fifth competitive meeting this season and Man City have a favourable 3W 1L record going for them.
That may not give any indication that Newcastle have troubled City all that much, but all of those matches have been tight affairs that hung in the balance for a good portion of the game. Add the pure confidence that must be coursing through them after their mid-week exploits, and St. James Park promises to be a cauldron.
City's defence and confidence are brittle
As much as Marc Guéhi's signing has strengthened Man City's defence, they continue to give the air that they can be got at. Whether it was against Leeds United at Elland Road or Nottingham Forest at home, just the past two games have shown exactly how brittle City's defence has been all season long. This is not the possession-controlling, chance-minimizing machine that we've seen Guardiola put out year-after-year.
What adds to this is how brittle their confidence seems. This City vintage doesn't have that invincible belief in themselves that at the end of the night, the W would be theirs, no matter what. And that's exactly what Newcastle United will target.
What do the numbers say?
City and Newcastle have played each other 10 times before in the FA Cup: City have won four, including the last two, while Newcastle have won six times.
City knocked Newcastle out in the League Cup semi-finals this season. Two teams have actually eliminated them from both the League Cup and FA Cup in the same season: Wimbledon in 1987-88 and Arsenal in 2007-08
City have won 18 of their last 20 matches in the FA Cup across the last four seasons, losing only in the finals in 2024 against Man Utd and 2025 against Crystal Palace.
