Hat-trick hero Marmoush fires City to Newcastle victory | OneFootball

Omar Marmoush announced himself to the Etihad faithful as his first City hat-trick powered us to an emphatic 4-0 victory over Newcastle United.

The Egyptian needed just 33 minutes to guarantee the matchball as we took a commanding lead before half-time.

His first - a deft lob over the advancing Martin Dubravka - also marked Ederson's sixth Premier League assist, setting a new record for goalkeepers.

James McAtee then scored his first Premier League goal at the Etihad in the final 10 minutes to crown one of our best performances this season.

With the two sides level on points before kick-off, the success sees us move back into the top four as we move towards the run-in to the campaign.

Perhaps just as importantly, it saw Marmoush prove to City fans and the entire Premier League exactly what he can do.

What happened

With three winter signings in the starting XI, including a home debut for midfielder Nico, City used the opening exchanges to dominate possession and territory.

Few risks were taken on the ball, with Pep Guardiola instead instructing his players to settle into the occasion against one of the Premier League’s outstanding attacking units.

The first major opening came in the 16th minute, as a lengthy move ended with Omar Marmoush skipping into the box and striking over with his weaker left foot.

The Egyptian made no mistake with his very next opportunity though, running on to Ederson’s chipped pass over Kieran Trippier and lobbing Martin Dubravka for his first City goal.

A landmark moment for Marmoush, but also for Ederson – with the Brazilian’s sixth assist setting a new Premier League record for goalkeepers.

The confidence was clearly flowing through our No.7 at that point and when a swift move down the left found its way to the feet of our new man, he shifted it to the side and fired into the bottom corner.

The game opened up even further from that point, with Newcastle coming incredibly close to halving the deficit when Alexander Isak shot from a tight angle.

Instead, we were soon 3-0 up and Marmoush had his maiden City hat-trick within 14 minutes of his opener.

This time it was Savinho down the right who pulled it back for the 26-year-old to step on to and cushion home from 12 yards.

We could have had more before the break, with Savinho himself coming close after giving left-back Lewis Hall twisted blood.

As the whistle went, the Etihad rose to its feet to praise one of our very best first-half displays this season.

15 minutes and a shuffle of the pack for the visitors did little to dampen our energy, with City immediately back on the front foot once play resumed.

Erling Haaland, who captained City for the first time, rose high to head at goal but couldn't get enough behind it to power it home, while Savinho continued to test Hall's defensive nous at every opportunity.

Newcastle were always likely to pose a threat at some stage but the game was almost an hour old when Ederson had to beat away a tame effort from substitute Lewis Miley.

Whereas a period of pressure has sometimes taken games away from us this season, the spine of Abdukodir Khusanov, John Stones and Nico never once seemed flustered in the face of adversity.

Instead, we only added to the margin of victory when substitute James McAtee turned home Haaland's near post flick from a Gundogan corner.

The Academy graduate has now contributed six goals already in his first full term as part of Pep Guardiola's squad.

The day's only potential black mark came as Haaland clutched his right knee with a few minutes to go and was quickly replaced.

The Norwegian walked off the pitch as part of a seemingly pre-planned substitution, but his availability for Wednesday's trip to Real Madrid will be confirmed one way or the other in the coming days.

Teams

CITY XI: Ederson, Lewis, Khusanov, Stones, Gvardiol (O'Reilly 87), Nico, Gundogan (Kovacic 87), Foden (McAtee 76), Marmoush (Doku 76), Savinho, Haaland (C) (Nunes 87)

Subs: Ortega Moreno, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Reis

NEWCASTLE UNITED XI: Dubravka, Trippier (Livramento 45), Schar, Burn, Hall, Bruno G. (C) (Longstaff 72), Tonali, Willock (Miley 45), Murphy, Gordon (Wilson 72), Isak (Krafth 89)

Subs: Pope, Barnes, Targett, Osula

Pep Guardiola reaction

The boss' thoughts will follow shortly.

Ederson's assists record

The Brazilian's chipped pass in behind for Marmoush was his sixth Premier League assist - a new record for goalkeepers.

He overtakes Paul Robinson, who picked up five assists across his top-flight career with Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, Blackburn Rovers and Burnley.

Our man is up to three in this campaign alone, which also sets a new record - with several goalkeepers previously notching two in the same term.

A revolutionary goalkeeper, his ability with the ball at his feet has been a crucial part of our historic success under Pep Guardiola.

And he continues to set the standard when it comes to distribution.

Man of the match

Omar Marmoush - After a bright start to his City career without a goal, our winter signing proved he’s the all-round package in this one.

Playing off the left and up against experienced full-back Kieran Trippier, Marmoush looked bright from the outset and could even have scored before his opener.

But when he was played in by Ederson and one-on-one with Martin Dubravka, our No.7 made it look the easiest thing in the world to lift the ball over the goalkeeper.

His City account was up and running, and before long he’d have guaranteed he’d be taking home the matchball.

Two composed finishes followed and the Etihad saluted the forward’s true breakthrough moment in a City shirt.

Nice by Nico

Nico, our deadline day arrival from Porto, discovered the physicality of English football in last week's trip to Leyton Orient.

He may have been forgiven for not wanting to throw himself into the thick of this game after an early withdrawal following one too many heavy challenges in east London.

Instead, our new No.14 was a decisive, metronomic presence on the ball and committed in winning every tackle.

Not only that, he was driving the team on through his words too. Every break in play saw him gee up his team-mates and applaud them for their hard work.

Stepping into the centre of midfield against one of the Premier League's in-form teams is no easy task.

That Nico looked like he'd been in this league for years is testament to his quality and must be a source of excitement for fans as to what the future may hold.

What it means

The victory moves City into the top four of the Premier League, overtaking Chelsea. We now have 44 points from 25 games, including 13 wins.

After a very difficult run of form through November and December, we have now lost one of our last eight Premier League games.

What's next

City now head to Spain for the second leg of our Champions League play-off round with Real Madrid. We're 3-2 down in that tie ahead of the 20:00 (UK) start at the Bernabeu on Wednesday 19 February.

Our next league assignment is a trip to league leaders Liverpool on Sunday 23 February - where kick-off is scheduled for 16:30 (UK).