Eagle-eyed fans claim Pep Guardiola told Eddie Howe ‘that’s not how you usually play’ after Man City’s convincing 2-0 FA Cup win over Newcastle

Eagle-eyed fans claim Pep Guardiola told Eddie Howe it was not Newcastle’s usual style of play during their FA Cup encounter on Saturday night.

Manchester City advanced to the semi-finals at Wembley following their 2-0 victory over the Magpies at the Etihad, with Bernardo Silva scoring both goals from deflected opportunities.

But some fans believe the Man City boss was quick to question why Newcastle were not their usual self during the match, quizzing Howe about it at the final whistle.

Fans believe Guardiola spoke to Howe and his assistant Jason Tindall during their post-match handshake to tell them: “That’s not how you usually play football.”

The Newcastle boss is seen speaking to his counterpart and embracing Guardiola’s words and thoughts, before the camera pans over.

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The defeat leaves Newcastle without silverware once again this season, and with an uphill battle to return to Europe as they currently sit tenth in the league.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference ahead of the FA Cup tie, Howe denied claims he wanted the season to end quickly, but admitted the campaign had been “extremely frustrating “.

He also has reassured Magpies fans that he calls his players to account behind the scenes after their 3-2 defeat against Chelsea on Monday evening.

Their year was disrupted by injury and Sandro Tonali’s playing ban, which left them in tenth place in the championship and kicked out of both cups at the quarter-final stage.

Last season they finished fourth in the Premier League and reached the Carabao Cup final, where they lost to Manchester United at Wembley.

On Friday, Howe told reporters: “It has been extremely frustrating. I said last year that when you went to see Newcastle you knew what you were going to get. You are going to see an extremely competitive, aggressive, strong and cohesive team.

“This year things have been a little different. We have been inconsistent. We went from match to match. I’m not saying you don’t know what you’re going to get, you see players giving 100 percent, but we’re just not the same, we haven’t been able to maintain our rhythm in games.

“Even against Chelsea we were inconsistent in that game – some very good moments, some not so good. That’s what we’re looking for, that identity you can count on.

After Saturday’s defeat, Newcastle legend Alan Shearer told the BBC he believed Howe had “credit in the bank” at the club and would remain in charge despite their disappointing campaign compared to the exploits of Last year.

After the international break, the Magpies play back-to-back home matches against West Ham and Everton.