Credit: Imago / Getty Images

Harri Burton

Sat 7 March 2026 21:56, UK

Follow us on Google Discover

Samuel Barrott was the talk of St James’ Park as Newcastle United and Manchester City battled it out in the FA Cup fifth round.

Harvey Barnes got the home supporters bouncing after just 18 minutes, but from that opener, the momentum completely shifted in the Citizens’ favour on Saturday, 7 March.

Savinho poked home the equaliser before the half-time break, before an Omar Marmoush second-half brace put the game out of sight for the Magpies, securing their spot in the next round.

Pep Guardiola made his feelings very clear about the referee’s performance, picking up a caution during the game, with attention now turning to Man City’s clash with Real Madrid in the Champions League.

Tijjani Reijnders completely wiped out in the penalty area

Inside the first three minutes, Man City could, and probably should, have been awarded a penalty. Tijjani Reijnders fired a shot wide before being crashed into by Malick Thiaw.

The incident was checked and cleared by VAR. Clearly, because the ball had already been kicked away, the Newcastle defender was allowed to get away with a blatant late challenge.

Whether it was halfway through the game or in the opening minute, it should have been a spot-kick to the Citizens.

Samuel Barrott takes it easy on Nico Gonzalez

Nico Gonzalez is well-known for picking up yellow cards at the Etihad Stadium, never pulling out of a challenge, but it was a completely different scenario for the midfielder.

Barrott had already blown the whistle when the Spaniard fired off a cross-field pass, knowing full well that play had already been paused and it was Newcastle’s ball.

What should have been a rather simple booking for the midfielder, Barrott decided to look the other way instead.

Penalty area antics are completely overlooked

Both sets of players were grappling and pulling inside the penalty area, with no end in sight, despite the referee happily watching it unfold right before his eyes.

We already see far too much of this in the Premier League, but with VAR now in operation at this stage of the FA Cup, it makes no sense for players to rugby tackle others at set-pieces.