Hibs 3-2 Hearts -Sunshine on Leith at full time
To say it was a bad day at the office for Exeter City would be an understatement.
Gary Caldwell has been the subject of a Pep Guardiola masterclass as Manchester City defeated Exeter City 10-1 in the FA Cup third round.
The former Hibs and Celtic defender has an impressive track record in the competition and was part of the Wigan Athletic team that defied the odds in 2013 when he captained them to FA Cup glory, however there was no such upset at the Etihad on Saturday afternoon.
Caldwell took over the Dover side in October 2022 and has established them as a solid League One side, never being close to promotion or relegation in any of his three seasons to date. While no one expected The Grecians to win away from home against a team that has won six out of the last eight Premier Leagues, the scoreline doesn’t make great reading for the Scotsman.
Man City break 40-year record against Caldwell’s men
As you can imagine, the game itself was goal after goal after goal, with the most notable of City’s 10 coming from new signing Antoine Semenyo. Exeter did manage a consolation goal at the death to avoid the whitewash through substitute George Birch and perhaps can take some positives that they kept City’s robotic goal-machine, Erling Haaland quiet before he was hooked at half time.
The result means Manchester City are now the first English top-flight side to score double figures in a match since September 1986, when Liverpool beat Fulham in the League cup 10-0. They are also the first top division team to score 10+ in the FA Cup since Tottenham Hotspur beat Crewe Alexandra 13-2 in February 1960.
As for Caldwell, he now has an opportunity to concentrate fully on league matters. Exeter currently sit 14th in the EFL League one table but have only lost one of their last five. If they continue this form, given the open nature of the league, they could be dark horses for the play-off spots.
Caldwell worried from the get-go of Etihad hammering
The Exeter boss knew his side would be in for a tough afternoon even before a ball was kicked, as Guardiola appeared not to be downing any tools. After the game he told Exeter City’s Youtube channel: “when the team sheet came in, we seen their [Man City’s] intent, what they wanted to do here today
“They obviously haven’t won their last three league games, so they came out with the ‘A squad’ shall we say, and they came out all guns blazing. That being said I thought we started the game quite well. We had a moment from a corner where the keeper made a good save and could’ve scored on the counter had our decision making been a wee bit better.
“The goals we conceded were poor - at any level you play at, you can’t concede goals like that but what I loved was the experience the players got. They seen world class players showing world class behaviours from the first minute to the last. They kept going, they were relentless, they didn’t stop at four or five, they kept doing the right thing and it’s a great experience for us if we learn from it. I doubt we’ll face a team of that quality ever again.”
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