Pep Guardiola bemoaned the fact that Newcastle had won with kicks, adding that he would have required the entire three-hour bus ride home to nurse his wounds after this humiliating loss.

The Spaniard grumbled about having to return to Manchester by car. He oddly kept Erling Haaland on the bench for City’s second-half performance, which can be best described as the road to nowhere.

Newcastle, in contrast, changed gears after spending the first half in reverse. In the end, the victory earned courtesy of Alexander Isak’s goal in the 53rd minute was well-deserved. 

But now that they’ve defeated Manchester’s blue half, they must defeat the red half in the next round. The fact that the game ended in a stalemate a few minutes after the whistle may have dampened Eddie Howe’s joy after defeating Guardiola for the first time ever. Given the game-changing introductions of Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimaraes at halftime, it was also a success for his management. With seven changes from the weekend victory against Nottingham Forest, City dominated the first 45 minutes without ever appearing to be in a position to score. After the break, they simply didn’t seem to be capable of scoring. While all was going on, Howe’s Newcastle was in charge. His substitutions brought his squad and the home crowd back to life after they had been lifeless in the first half.In the second half, Howe claimed, “We presented them with challenges and showed them less respect.” After an extremely challenging first half, Anthony and Bruno enhanced our performance. Despite the fact that it was good to finally defeat Guardiola, the goal was to advance.Right in front of the opposing team’s dugout, Gordon made his first contribution by kicking Mateo Kovacic and the ball into touch. It established the mood as Newcastle turned from submissive to combative.Newcastle stepped up their rhythm, kicking, and aggression, according to Guardiola. “I’m not sure how many fouls they committed, but whatever.”When the game first began, Tyneside was under a storm warning. The early exchanges were calm because that did not apply to the game. Four thousand visiting supporters mockingly asked, “Is this the Etihad?” in response to the peace.City controlled 70% of the ball, but all they could muster was a Julian Alvarez shot that Nick Pope’s foot blocked. When Jack Grealish attempted to run clear on goal and was caught and robbed by Paul Dummett, who had not played in 13 months, it did not speak well of his current mental sharpness.The hosts had to make their way out of their own half after Jacob Murphy’s attempt was saved after 41 minutes. With that double change in response.Guardiola didn’t appear to be in a good mood, and a few moments later, Isak put Newcastle ahead. The hard work had already been done by Joelinton, who burst through three City jerseys before setting up his teammate for the finish. St. James no longer had the subdued Etihad’s tone.And the home tackles persisted, some of which turned into fouls. Howe and Guardiola exchanged insults on the sidelines as Guardiola was enraged. All of this contrasted greatly with the gloomy first half.The City manager eventually received a ticket for appealing too many decisions. In the second half, he displayed more grit than any of his players.