Newcastle travel to Manchester on Wednesday in an attempt to reach a third Carabao Cup final in four years, but will have to do it the hard way starting with a two goal deficit and missing star player Bruno Guimaraes.
Manchester City overcame the magpies at St James Park over three weeks ago, with goals from Antoine Semenyo and Rayan Cherki giving the citizens a two goal cushion going into the game at the Etihad.
The hosts come into the game in mixed form however, with recent losses to Bodo/Glimt and Manchester United, alongside a draw to **Tottenham**mean they have only won two from the last five games.
The form of Erling Haaland is also a concern with the striker only scoring two goals since the 20th of December, one of which was a penalty. Coupled alongside a defensive injury crisis, the citizens are in danger of their season beginning to falter.
However, no matter how bad it is for the hosts, it is arguably worse for the magpies. One win in their last six, and without key player and captain Bruno Guimaraes, the chances of getting a result at the Etihad are remarkably slim.
The odds get even slimmer when you take into consideration the toon's record there. The last time **Newcastle**won at the Etihad was in 2014, in a 2-0 victory, coincidently also in the Carabao Cup.
Goals from Rolando Aarons, now at **Morecambe,**and Moussa Sissoko, who has just reunited with former magpies boss Rafa Benitez, at Panathinaikos, fired the toon to a famous victory.
The winner of this tie will face either Arsenal or **Chelsea**in the final at Wembley on the 22nd of March.
Team News
Team News
Manchester City:
The citizens will continue to monitor first-leg goalscorer Rayan Cherki in the hope that he is able to play a part at the Etihad following a knock sustained in the 2-2 draw away at **Tottenham**on the weekend.
Ruben Dias returned to training for the first time on Monday, following a hamstring injury and has a chance of making the match, but Jeremy Doku, Josko Gvardiol, John Stones and **Savinho**all remain injured.
January signing Marc Guehi is unavailable as he was signed after the first leg, and had already played in the Carabao Cup for Crystal Palace this season but that rule does not apply for first-leg goalscorer Antoine Semenyo.
Newcastle:
**Newcastle**are without the services of captain Bruno Guimaraes, who continues to be ruled out with an ankle injury sustained during the Champions League victory against PSV.
**Joelinton**also remains out as a result of the groin injury picked up against Aston Villa, meaning that the magpies are stretched thin in midfield, not helped with Lewis Miley also ruled out with a knee injury.
Tino Livramento and Fabian Schar remain long-term absentees, with ankle and knee injuries respectively.
Likely Lineups
Manchester City: James Trafford, Matheus Nunes, Abdukodir Khusanov, Nathan Ake, Nico O'Reilly, Nico Gonzalez, Antoine Semenyo, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Omar Marmoush, Erling Haaland.
Newcastle: Nick Pope, Kieran Trippier, Malick Thiaw, Dan Burn, Sven Botman, Lewis Hall, Sandro Tonali, Jacob Ramsey, Anthony Elanga, Yoane Wissa, Anthony Gordon.
Key Players
Antoine Semenyo:
The Ghanaian winger has had an electric start to his Manchester City career following his £62 million move from **Bournemouth**in January, scoring four in five games.
Providing pace and energy on the right side of attack, the former Bristol City man already has 14 goals to his name so far this season, including the first goal of the first-leg against the magpies, before having another ruled out just minutes later.
With Erling Haaland and Phil Foden, struggling in front of goal recently, the onus is on **Semenyo**to step up once more and take his side to Wembley.
Lewis Hall:
The young English left-back as been one of the stars of what has been a relatively miserable season in the north-east so far.
**Newcastle's**star over the Christmas and New Year period, fatigue may be starting to take its toll on the 21 year old, but his silky ball-carrying skills coupled with playmaking ability make him a very good choice should **England**manager Thomas Tuchel pick him for the World Cup.
With captain Bruno Guimaraes, and fellow **Chelsea**academy graduate Tino Livramento, out injured, the Englishman is going to have to be on top form if the toon are to get anything out of the match, as well as keeping **Antoine Semenyo**quiet.
Match Details
Where is the match being played?
The match is being played at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester.
What time is kick off?
The game will kick-off at 20:00. The other Carabao Cup semi-final second leg is takin place on Tuesday 3rd February, between Arsenal and Chelsea.
How can I watch?
The game is live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football. Free-to-view highlights will be on YouTube at the end of the game.