The cup action continues with the Carabao Cup semi-finals this week as Newcastle United welcome Manchester City with a spot at Wembley up for grabs in this two-legged affair
06:00, 13 Jan 2026
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Newcastle United and Manchester City are set to face off at St James’ Park on Tuesday in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final showdown. The Magpies are aiming to defend their 2024-25 EFL Cup crown, while the Citizens are determined to reclaim the trophy for the first time since their 2020-21 triumph.
Newcastle ended a 70-year wait for major silverware by lifting the EFL Cup in the 2024-25 season, with Alexander Isak and Dan Burn scoring in a memorable 2-1 victory over Liverpool at Wembley. Eddie Howe’s side have continued their strong form in this year’s competition, dispatching Bradford City 4-1 in the third round, overcoming Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the fourth, and edging past Fulham 2-1 in the quarter-finals courtesy of a dramatic 92nd-minute winner from Lewis Miley.
Now, Newcastle face their toughest challenge yet in their bid to retain the trophy, welcoming Manchester City to St James’ Park for the semi-final first leg before heading to the Etihad Stadium for the return fixture in early February. The Magpies can draw confidence from their recent home record against City, having won two, drawn one, and lost one of their last four meetings at St James’ Park. Notably, Newcastle have also come out on top in both of their last two EFL Cup clashes with the Citizens.
The hosts enter this semi-final in excellent form, unbeaten in their last four matches with three wins and a draw—including a dramatic 7-6 penalty shootout victory over Bournemouth. Newcastle also boast an impressive 13-match unbeaten run at home, with 10 wins and three draws at St James’ Park.
Manchester City, meanwhile, arrive in similarly formidable shape, unbeaten in their last 12 games across all competitions, recording nine wins and three draws. Their most recent outing saw them dismantle Exeter City 10-1 in a dominant display.
Despite their current momentum, City have found the EFL Cup more challenging in recent seasons, exiting in the third round in 2023-24, the fourth round in both 2021-22 and 2024-25, and falling at the quarter-final stage in 2022-23. However, wins over Huddersfield Town, Swansea City, and Brentford have propelled them to their first semi-final appearance since their run of four consecutive titles from 2017-18 to 2020-21. Pep Guardiola’s men will be eager to go the distance and bring the trophy back to Manchester.
With the second leg set for early February at the Etihad, Guardiola will be hoping his side can secure a positive result at St James’ Park—especially after suffering a 2-1 defeat to Newcastle there in the Premier League in November 2025. City’s last victory at St James’ Park came exactly two years before this semi-final, when Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, and Oscar Bobb all found the net in a thrilling 3-2 win, sealed by a 91st-minute strike from the young Norwegian winger.
Newcastle vs Man City Team News
Dan Burn, Emil Krafth, Fabian Schar, Jamaal Lascelles, and William Osula are all sidelined with injuries for Newcastle, while Anthony Elanga remains a doubt after picking up a knock. Harvey Barnes, who has netted four goals in his last two outings for the Magpies, is expected to start in the front four alongside Anthony Gordon, Nick Woltemade, and Yoane Wissa.
In midfield, Bruno Guimaraes is likely to return to the starting XI in place of Jacob Ramsey, partnering Sandro Tonali. The backline could feature Lewis Miley, Malick Thiaw, Sven Botman, and Lewis Hall—the latter having come on for the injured Valentino Livramento in the previous match against Bournemouth.
Manchester City, meanwhile, will be without John Stones, Josko Gvardiol, Mateo Kovacic, Ruben Dias, Savinho, and Oscar Bobb, who are all dealing with injury issues. Max Alleyne and Abdukodir Khusanov have started City’s last two games at centre-back and may continue their partnership, with Matheus Nunes and Nico O’Reilly likely to fill the full-back roles.
Phil Foden, rested for City’s emphatic win over Exeter, is expected to return to the attack, potentially joining Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders, Jeremy Doku, and Erling Haaland in the forward line against Newcastle.
Newcastle vs Man City Prediction
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