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2023/24 English Premier League
Matchday 21
Newcastle United v Manchester City
St James' Park
Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Saturday, 13 January 2024
Kick-off is at 19h30
Manchester City will look to keep the momentum going in the New Year when they head north to face Newcastle at St James' Park on Saturday, January 13.
The Citizens went unbeaten in their final four matches of 2023 to close within five points of Premier League leaders Liverpool in third place.
A 2-0 victory over Sheffield United at the Etihad Stadium on December 30 was their third win in four games as Pep Guardiola's side climbed above Arsenal on goal difference in the standings, with the two teams tied on 40 points.
Aston Villa maintained the two-point gap to City in second position after halting a two-game winless run with a 3-2 triumph over Burnley at Villa Park, while the Gunners went down 2-1 to Fulham on December 31 to end the calendar year with back-to-back defeats.
The Magpies lost 4-2 against the Reds at Anfield on New Year's Day to continue their slide down the table after picking up just one point in their last five outings.
Eddie Howe's side find themselves just one point ahead of Chelsea (10th) and Wolves (11th) in ninth spot and trail Manchester United (8th) and Brighton (7th) by two points.
Anthony Gordon has really stepped up for the Toon this term in the absence of Harvey Barnes and is enjoying his most productive season of his Premier League career. The winger set up Alexander Isak for the equaliser on Merseyside with a storming run and an exquisite pass to register his seventh assist of the campaign to go along with his six goals.
Rodri underlined his importance to City with the opener against the Blades after collecting the ball from Phil Foden and advancing towards goal before slotting home from the edge of the box. The Premier League champions have struggled without the Spaniard, who has served two suspensions this season, but took his tally to four goals in 16 outings - his best return since scoring seven in 2021-22.
Howe questioned the refereeing decisions for both of Liverpool's penalties, but insists Newcastle cannot feel sorry for themselves and believes results will soon pick up.
"A lot happened. Action-packed game. We're disappointed with the way we defended," he told Sky Sports.
"I didn't think the second one was a penalty. And I did think Sean Longstaff's one before that was. It shouldn't be given. Martin has pulled his hand away. He's (Jota) had two steps before going down.
"For me it's not a penalty. Even the first one the contact was so minimal. We feel hard done by. You have to have the mindset that you create your luck. Feeling sorry for yourself never has any positive outcome.
"The players gave everything. I back the quality of the group. In time we'll get the results we need."
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Guardiola revealed he had to remind his players at half-time to go out and enjoy themselves against Sheffield United after only picking up a point in each of their previous three home games.
"[We were] uncomfortable the last three times we were here," the Spaniard said. "The first part was silent. The body language of players didn't communicate, talk, laugh, or shout. It was a little bit, 'okay we have to play'.
"In football, you have to have something inside. At half-time for the first time I didn't talk one word about tactics - I took a chair and said 'guys when you go out with a smile on your face and enjoy, we are going to win'.
"In the second half, the first 15 to 20 minutes was the best minutes we had, and that helped us win the game."
Head-to-Head (Last Five Premier League Meetings)
Matches - 5
Newcastle - 0
Man City - 4
Draws - 1
Premier League Matchday 21 fixtures:
Friday, January 12
21h45: Burnley v Luton Town
Saturday, January 13
14h30: Chelsea v Fulham
19h30: Newcastle United v Manchester City
Sunday, January 14
16h00: Everton v Aston Villa
18h30: Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur
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