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Days after their loss to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League play-off, Manchester City bounced back with a 4-0 victory over Newcastle United, enhancing their chances of clinching the English Premier League trophy.
This win propelled Pep Guardiola’s team into fourth place on the Premier League table, improving their prospects of qualifying for the next season's Champions League.
In the match held on Saturday, City’s new recruit, Omar Marmoush, stole the spotlight with a magnificent hat-trick in just 14 minutes, earning him the nickname ‘Egyptian king.’
Marmoush, who transferred to City for £59m from Eintracht Frankfurt last month, has a long journey ahead to match the legendary stature of Liverpool's ‘Egyptian king,’ but he certainly made a statement by breaking his scoring drought after four games without finding the net.
There was just 13 minutes and 54 seconds between Marmoush's first goal—capitalizing on Kieran Trippier's missed interception of a long pass from City goalkeeper Ederson—and his third goal, which he converted expertly from 10 yards. In between, Marmoush showcased his skill with a well-timed finish to Ilkay Gundogan’s pass that split the defense inside the penalty box. This hat-trick ranks as the fourth-quickest by a City player in Premier League history, with Sergio Aguero having the fastest treble at nine minutes in 2015.
Following Marmoush's impressive performance in the first half, substitute James McAtee added a fourth goal for City in the 84th minute, courtesy of a flick-on from stand-in captain Erling Haaland.
Despite missing defensive players Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, and Nathan Ake, City displayed a reminiscent performance of their past successes, serving as a perfect preparation for Wednesday's crucial Champions League match against Real Madrid.
Guardiola will hope that the knock Haaland picked up just four minutes before full-time, which led to his premature departure from the match, is not serious. For Newcastle, the loss at the Etihad Stadium has become all too familiar; they have now suffered 16 consecutive defeats at this venue and have failed to score in their last six visits.
