Source: TheGuardian
Newport County v Manchester City: FA Cup fifth round – live!
FA Cup fifth-round updates from the tie at Rodney ParadeNewport County: inside story of a club that rose from the deadAnd feel free to email Gregg or tweet @GreggBakowski 4.55pm GMT Millwall join Watford and Brighton in the quarter-finals. They’ve beaten Wimbledon 1-0. 4.50pm GMT Of course, Wales has played host to one of the biggest ever FA Cup shocks. Step forward Wrexham in January 1992 who, like Newport, were in the fourth tier when they shot down the Gunners. Arsenal, like City, were the reigning league champions at the time. Mickey Thomas scored a belting free-kick in a famous 2-1 win at the Racecourse Ground. Oh, and get well soon Mickey. 4.40pm GMT Here’s what the Newport manager, Michael Flynn, has to say having just seen that City lineup: “That just goes to show how much respect Pep Guardiola has not just for us but for City fans too. We want to put on a show and stop them. I think it would be [the biggest Cup upset ever] because of the finances in the game and the level they are playing at.”On the pitch, which looks pretty good to me from the few shots I have seen: “ I want football to be played the right way. The people of Newport deserve to see how good these players can be. Not just City players but our lot too. This day is for our fans too. It’s a one-off but who knows?” 4.38pm GMT Newport County: Day, Butler, Demetrio, O’Brien, Bennett, Poole, Bakinson, Labadie, Willmott, Matt, Amond: Subs: Townsend, Pipe, Franks, Dolan, Marsh-Brown, Sheehan, McKirdy.Manchester City: Ederson, Zinchenko, Stones, Otamendi, Danilo, Fernandinho, Sane, Silva (C), Foden, Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus. Subs: Muric, Laporte, Walker, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Sterling, Bernardo Silva. 3.38pm GMT Evening. Newport have had a magical Cup run so far. They’ve seen off the Met Police, Wrexham, Leicester and Middlesbrough to set up the juiciest of home ties with Manchester City in the fifth round. Romance is very much alive in this corner of south Wales. The brilliant thing about today’s match is that even if Pep Guardiola plays an understrength team, it will still be capable of beating most sides in Europe, meaning that anything other than a City win will be considered a PROPER CUP SHOCK. However, the chances of seeing a PROPER CUP SHOCK are as slim as a pencil shaving on a diet, aren’t they? City have put seven past Rotherham, nine past Burton and six past Chelsea in recent weeks. And while Newport boss Michael Flynn can be grateful he hasn’t got David Luiz in his defence this evening, his side will have to be on it whatever the City XI. The pitch may be a leveller and Guardiola has even suggested there are things Newport can do better than his £1bn squad, who will “suffer” at Rodney Parade.Anything can happen in one game, especially away from home. I’ve seen Newport’s last few games and they are incredible at set pieces and throw-ins. What they do, they do really well. They are taller and stronger than us and, in some areas, might be better than us, so we will have to make sure we play our own game and not theirs and focus on what we are good at. They have all been in this situation before, it is part of football and we will absolutely not be complaining about it. The players know what FA Cup football is about too, these sort of challenges arrive every year and we know they can be tricky. Last season at Wigan for instance I thought we played a decent game, but then we had a man sent off and when it was 10 v 11 they scored a late goal. Related: Newport County: the inside story of a club that rose from the dead Continue reading......read full article
