Pep Guardiola double gamble gives Man City a boost despite impossible task

Elton John may be a big fan but Watford will be glad to see the back of Manchester City.

On Saturday they could only watch as young defender Callum Doyle smashed in the opening goal for his loan club Norwich to condemn them to their second defeat in the Championship. That was a taster for a Carabao Cup exit as City booked their place in the fourth round despite making nine changes from the Arsenal draw that included five local talents and a debut for 16-year-old Kaden Braithwaite after just one first team training session.

James McAtee, another of the quintet, nearly put City ahead sooner than Doyle had scored for Norwich but couldn't get his feet in place quickly enough from a Jack Grealish cross. Pep Guardiola only needed to wait until the fifth minute though before Jeremy Doku neatly finished a Grealish pass after McAtee had nipped in to nick the ball off the goalkeeper's toes.

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A simple game without incident was everything City needed after the draining drama of the Arsenal match, and the crowd certainly enjoyed the shift in stakes as they taunted the opposition fans about the 2019 FA Cup final before turning their attention to the state of Old Trafford. As the crowd cruised, City were given a sharp jolt when Kwadwo Baah shoved Atherton teenager Braithwaite to the floor and slotted past Stefan Ortega; to the relief of the Etihad, referee David Webb deemed it a foul.

Rico Lewis was playing right-back, false nine and everywhere in between, so it was no surprise that he was heavily involved in City's second goal towards the end of the first half. After exchanging passes