Sky Blue News: City Cruise, Riyad Resurgence, Who’s Next?, and More...

Manchester City are through to the Fourth Round of the FA Cup after dispatching Chelsea FC bu a score of 4-0. Sky Blue News has the latest headlines to catch you up on all the action.

CITY ENSURE FA CUP PROGRESS WITH CONFIDENT VICTORY OVER CHELSEA - Paul Brown - ManCity.com

City scored a majestic team goal on 38 minutes that had the Etihad in raptures.

Rodri floated an inch-perfect ball into Mahrez on the right, who fed the onrushing Kyle Walker. Our skipper for the day then centred for Foden who made no mistake with a clinical finish.

Mahrez completed the scoring on 84 minutes after firing home from the spot, after Foden had been upended.

Quick Match Recap: Manchester City 4-0 Chelsea - Saul Garcia - Bitter and Blue

A good match it did make for as the club really improved after the midweek hard fought game.

One where City was in control with possession and chances created. They played a similarly chance filled second half and this time it was a master performance from Alvarez and Mahrez that secured the win

City had so many players who played well and did take the win in the end, in a great and conclusive fashion.

Two others of note, Aymeric Laporte and Manuel Akanji.

The story of the night is that City win and advance in the FA Cup and now will more than likely play Arsenal.

It’s a nice win and we move with a clean sheet.

Man City 4-0 Chelsea: Riyad Mahrez helps set up possible Arsenal tie in FA Cup as pressure builds on Graham Potter - Adam Bate - Sky Sports

City were three up at half-time thanks to Riyad Mahrez’s magnificent free-kick, Julian Alvarez’s penalty and Phil Foden’s tremendous team goal. Mahrez added his second and City’s fourth from the spot late on to further underline the gulf between the two teams.

Pep Guardiola’s team can look forward to a tie at home to Arsenal if the Premier League leaders overcome Oxford United on Monday evening. As for Chelsea, it is the first time this century that the Blues find themselves not among the clubs in the fourth round.

The result adds to the pressure on Potter, who was only appointed in September. Chelsea have now lost six of their last nine matches in all competitions and have not tasted victory away from home since beating Red Bull Salzburg in October.

Pep Guardiola pinpoints Riyad Mahrez mindset change behind brilliant Man City form - Joe Bray - Manchester Evening News

Riyad Mahrez’s reaction to being dropped this week at Chelsea in the Premier League earned him a start in the FA Cup against the same opponents, Pep Guardiola has said.

Mahrez struggled for regular starts at the beginning of the season, and didn’t score his first goal until October. Since then, however, he has reclaimed his right-wing spot and has eight goals in 12 Manchester City appearances, with two assists - including two strikes against Chelsea in the FA Cup.

That takes his tally to four goals in three appearances against Chelsea this season, and Guardiola indicated that a change in attitude midway through the season has been the key reason for Mahrez’s improved form.

“Maybe Riyad had a problem coming back from the summertime, not the World Cup,” Guardiola said.

“The quality from Riyad is everything. He loves to play football, helped us to play the game, he played really good, and at 0-0 that can happen. He played an outstanding game playing wider. Good game.

Review and Player Ratings from a Sunday night stroll into the next round – Man City 4-0 Chelsea - Dillon Meehan - City Report

For the second game in a row, Pep Guardiola made a slew of changes as he attempted to find a squad balance in a congested fixture list.

Stefan Ortega got the nod in goal, with Kyle Walker, Manuel Akanji, Aymeric Laporte and Sergio Gomez rounding out the defence. Rodri took his spot as the holding midfielder, while Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden joined him in midfield. Julian Alvarez got his first start since the World Cup, flanked by Cole Palmer to his left and Riyad Mahrez to his right.

Despite the rotation and an uninspired first-half performance earlier this week against the same opposition, it was apparent midway through the first half that this was going to be a different City performance.

Like most City matches, the opening few minutes were a fight to take control. Chelsea’s press and high line initially caused a few headaches. However, Guardiola quickly made a tactical shift; Gomez switched from an inverted fullback to a more traditional overlapping role, while Bernardo sat back alongside Rodri to offer more control.

From there, City took full control of the match.

Confirmed Manchester City FA Cup fourth round opponent following completed draw and Chelsea win - City Xtra

Pep Guardiola’s side comfortably overcame Graham Potter’s Chelsea for the third time this season, beating the West London club for the second time in four days, having won 1-0 at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League on Thursday.

The next round of the competition takes place at the end of January, with fourth round fixtures scheduled to be played between Friday 27th January and Monday 30th January 2023.

City, who are bidding to win the competition for the first time since 2019, will face either Oxford United or Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium in the FA Cup fourth round.

A clash against the current league leaders or the League One outfit will come either side of Premier League games against Wolves and Tottenham.

Oxford host Arsenal at the Kassam Stadium on Monday 9th January.

And finally... It looks like the deal for a new Argentinian starlet is nearly done.

Guardiola contacts former Liverpool star to get approval for first Man City signing of 2023 - Samuel Bannister - TeamTalk

January isn’t always the busiest month for the biggest clubs, who already have settled squads. But City have been working on one signing in particular in recent weeks.

Guardiola’s side have been on the trail of Velez Sarsfield starlet, Maximo Perrone. The midfielder was also on the radar of Newcastle, but City seem to have pulled into pole position.

On New Year’s Eve, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano revealed there was a “verbal agreement” for Perrone to join City. The deal could be worth a transfer fee in the region of £6.6million.

There you have it. Stay with us at Bitter and Blue as City get set to travel to Southampton on Wednesday for the Carabao Cup Quarterfinals and to Old Trafford at the weekend for the Manchester Derby.