Skipper Haaland sidelined by Man City's new poacher

If it shaped up as the day Manchester City had a new leader, it also became the game they got a new scorer.

- RICHARD JOLLY

Erling Haaland got an armband, but Omar Marmoush got a hat-trick. He earned the match ball for a display of dynamism and destructiveness that tends to be associated with the man who captained City for the first time. A blend of physicality and clinical brilliance can seem unstoppable.

Certainly Newcastle United found it that way. What was supposed to be a battle for fourth place became a rout, decided in 14 minutes as City got their biggest league win of the season. Marmoush’s treble spelled trouble for Newcastle, while City had a scare after an apparent injury to Haaland. Perhaps for the rest of the division, too. This was the first sign City’s expensive winter rebuilding will have the transformative impact intended.

If Marmoush was bought as a match-winner he decided what, realistically, could rank as one of their most important remaining games. “We need to win these games to qualify for the Champions League,” said Pep Guardiola.

Elimination from the competition could come this week. Now City are a step closer to a top-four finish and a return. That was the immediate imperative when they splashed out more than £170m in a couple of weeks. Now it looks likelier after three of their newcomers started and starred: Abdukodir Khusanov’s second Premier League appearance was less traumatic than his first and Nico Gonzalez was excellent.

But neither was the headline act. “The highlight is him, of course,” Guardiola said of Marmoush. “Hopefully he can handle the biggest compliments.” He shared the praise for bringing in Marmoush, hailing his sporting director, Txiki Begiristain. “He comes to me and says we need this player,” he elaborated. Guardiola then rang some contacts in Germany who supported that view.