Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

Phil Foden, Kevin De Bruyne on target as Manchester City ease into FA Cup quarter-finals

sportsmole.co.uk, 28 February 2023, 21:52
Manchester City have booked their place into the FA Cup quarter-finals after beating Championship side Bristol City 3-0 in the fifth round at Ashton Gate on Tuesday night.

Phil Foden opened the scoring just seven minutes into the tie, before adding a second in the 74th minute with a deflected effort, which still may go down as an own goal from Zak Vyner.

Kevin De Bruyne then sealed the victory with a sweet strike in the final 10 minutes to fire Pep Guardiola's side into the quarter-finals for the fifth successive year.

Man City have now won each of their last 11 away matches in the FA Cup, the longest winning run on the road by any team in the competition's history.

The Citizens have also extended their winning run against lower-league teams in the FA Cup to 13 games, while Bristol City have now been eliminated from 14 of their 15 FA Cup fifth-round ties.

Kalvin Phillips was one of six changes made to Guardiola's starting lineup following last weekend's 4-1 Premier League win at Bournemouth, with the midfielder starting just his second game of the season since joining the Citizens last summer.

The Yorkshireman was instantly involved in the action at Ashton Gate and almost opened the scoring in just the second minute when he rattled the crossbar with curling shot from around 20 yards out.

However, Man City made the breakthrough just five minutes later when a neat one-two between Riyad Mahrez and De Bruyne resulted in the former fizzing an inviting delivery towards the back post for Foden to tap home a first-time finish from a tight angle.

As expected, the visitors dominated proceedings but Nigel Pearson's side had their fare share of chances in front of the fired-up Ashton Gate faithful, with highly-rated duo Alex Scott and Sam Bell posing a constant threat in and around Man City's box.

The Citizens ended the first half strongly, with De Bruyne and Ruben Dias both coming close to doubling their lead, but the Robins defended well to ensure they headed into the interval only a goal down.

Both teams made a change at the break, with Man City goalkeeper Ederson replacing Stefan Ortega who required treatment for a hand injury early in the first half, while Bristol City opted for an attacking alteration, with skipper Andreas Weimann introduced at the expense of George Tanner, with Mark Sykes filling in at right-back.

Ederson was instantly called into action and was involved in a nervy moment on the edge of his box, clashing shins with Bell after clearing the ball down the pitch.

Just a few minutes later, Foden - who started the second half as brightly as the first - drove down the left flank and almost picked out Julian Alvarez with a dangerous cross across the six-yard box.

After Alvarez tested Max O'Leary from range, Bristol City enjoyed a positive spell of possession in the final third and arguably their best chance of the match fell to Bell inside the six-yard box on the 70-minute mark.

Dias looked to shepherd the ball out for a goal kick, but Scott's relentless efforts to win the ball back paid off, flicking the ball back for Weimann to whip a dangerous delivery towards Bell, who directed his first-time effort off target.

Just as Bristol City appeared to be getting back into the contest, Man City doubled their lead in the 74th minute when Alvarez teed up Foden for a left-footed strike inside the area, which took a deflection off Robins defender Vyner before finding the bottom corner.

De Bruyne then put the game to bed seven minutes later with a perfectly-placed curling strike from around 25 yards out into the bottom-right corner.

Man City remain on course to lift their first FA Cup since 2018-19, and their name will be in the hat for the quarter-final draw on Wednesday night.

Guardiola's side will now turn their attention to Saturday's Premier League clash at home against Newcastle United, while Bristol City will look to return to winning ways when they travel to South Wales for the Severnside derby against Cardiff City in the Championship.

Top News

28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Ollie Watkins is set to return to the Aston Villa starting XI when they face Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Monday. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona have reportedly won the race to sign Bayer Leverkusen defender Jonathan Tah on a free transfer, with the Germany international set to make the move to the Catalan outfit at the end of the 2024-25 campaign. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid are reportedly huge admirers of Tottenham Hotspur's Micky van de Ven but would not be prepared to pay the North London club's valuation of the centre-back. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Ninth hosts 10th in the Premier League this Monday when Brighton & Hove Albion travel north to face Aston Villa. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Former Liverpool captain Graeme Souness has claimed that Bruno Fernandes "has become a liability" for Manchester United, with the Portugal international's leadership skills being called into question. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea will be hoping to end a Premier League streak when they face Ipswich Town at Portman Road on Monday night. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Hoping to replicate their 5-1 thrashing of West Ham United from September's EFL Cup clash, Liverpool visit the London Stadium for a Premier League date with the Irons on Sunday evening. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Kalvin Phillips is set to drop out of the Ipswich Town side when they welcome Chelsea to Portman Road in the Premier League on Monday. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca could utilise his large squad for the trip to Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Monday. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea finish 2024 by making their first trip to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town since 2002 in the Premier League on Monday. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United have reportedly agreed to let Joshua Zirkzee leave the club on loan in January, with Juventus and Napoli both believed to be keen to secure his signature. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Hoping to end an historic year on a high, Bologna will welcome Hellas Verona to Stadio Renato Dall'Ara on Monday. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Cristiano Ronaldo has said that he would "make things clear" if he was to become the owner of Manchester United. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk One of the lesser-seen top-flight fixtures in the past few decades, Chelsea and Ipswich Town have rarely shared the same division, but that does not mean there have not been key battles between the two. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Bournemouth will have the opportunity to equal a club record in Sunday's Premier League clash with Fulham. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Napoli are reportedly interested in signing Manchester United defender Luke Shaw during the January transfer window. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Four places separate Famalicao and Santa Clara in the Primeira Liga table heading into Monday's gameweek 16 match at Estadio Municipal de Famalicao. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Nottingham Forest will be aiming to keep their Champions League push on track when they travel to Everton in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aiming for a remarkable fourth straight win over Tottenham Hotspur, Wolverhampton Wanderers head down to North London on Sunday afternoon for their final Premier League game of 2024. 28 December 2024 talksport.com Tottenham have been told to make a huge decision on the future of club captain Heung-Min Son. 28 December 2024 talksport.com Manchester City travel to face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium at a very unusual time this Sunday afternoon. 28 December 2024 talksport.com Jude Bellingham has signed a long-term deal to return to Championship football - but Real Madrid fans can rest easy. 28 December 2024 talksport.com Former Liverpool star Jamie Carragher has revealed which signings he believes are key to Arsenal challenging for the title this season. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk When Tottenham Hotspur take to the field against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday afternoon, the combined age of their two centre-backs may be younger than all of Lukasz Fabianski, Ashley Young and James Milner, the three oldest players to feature in this season's Premier League. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Hoping to avoid going into 2025 with just one win from 14 games in all competitions, Premier League champions Manchester City travel to the King Power Stadium to face Leicester City on Sunday afternoon. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United will look to avoid suffering their worst month in 62 years when they welcome Newcastle United to Old Trafford on Monday. 28 December 2024 talksport.com Cristiano Ronaldo revealed his dream role after football when he was asked about former club Manchester United. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester City expert Steven McInerney of Esteemed Kompany has claimed that Pep Guardiola's side are vulnerable to a Jamie Vardy "masterclass" in Sunday's Premier League meeting with Leicester City. 28 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester City will have the chance to set a new club record when they travel to the King Power Stadium for Sunday's Premier League clash with Leicester City. 28 December 2024 talksport.com Non-league club Tamworth FC have sparked a backlash from football fans after revealing ticket prices for their upcoming FA Cup showdown with Tottenham.