Manchester City produce little big plan with Marmoush to bemuse Newcastle

A report from Theguardian says Pep Guardiola trialled a "little big" strike partnership against Newcastle, deploying Omar Marmoush and Antoine Semenyo wide to create space in the middle for Tijjani Reijnders and Phil Foden. The experiment came as City search for ways to manage the burden on Erling Haaland, who has proved difficult to replace and had looked jaded from overuse.

Marmoush and Semenyo operated largely as wingers, and Marmoush’s interchange with Reijnders produced the first goal after a ricochet off Dan Burn. The pair’s pace contributed to a second goal when Kieran Trippier cleared off the line and Marmoush nodded the rebound over the line, and an ill‑judged Burn tackle presented Reijnders with a third.

When Haaland was introduced he did not play centrally but occupied Semenyo’s right and saw a chance from a Rayan Cherki through ball saved by Aaron Ramsdale. Theguardian notes that giving Marmoush a different role suited his attributes and helped him thrive after a season of irregular appearances.