Man City’s Max Alleyne Delivers Mature Display And Sends Strong Warning Before Newcastle Return Leg

‎Manchester City youngster, Max Alleyne, has urged his teammates to ignore their 2–0 advantage over Newcastle as they push to secure another Carabao Cup final appearance.

‎The young defender warned that the job is far from finished despite a strong first-leg performance. Goals from new signing Antoine Semenyo and substitute Rayan Cherki at St James’ Park gave City a solid platform heading into the second leg.

‎However, 20-year-old defender Alleyne, who was handed a rare start on Tyneside in the face of a defensive injury crisis, insists Pep Guardiola’s men must treat the return as an entirely new game if they are to cement their passage.

‎He told the club’s official website, “We can’t treat it like we’re 2-0 up. Going into the second leg, just treat it like any other game and go from there.

‎“We want to win that game as well, we want to get to Wembley.”

‎Alleyne, freshly back from his loan spell at Watford, delivered a composed performance alongside Abdukodir Khusanov as City’s defence secured a crucial clean sheet.

‎He admitted afterward that he hadn’t anticipated starting, even with injuries to Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol. Still, he embraced the chance to showcase how much he has grown this season.

‎The central defender, who won the praise of his manager for a mature display, said, “I wasn’t fully expecting to start, so I really enjoyed that.

‎“The last week or so has been crazy, but I wouldn’t change it for anything and I enjoyed it, loved every second.

‎“(It was) my first one since I’ve been back, so really proud of the team. It wasn’t easy.

‎”You have to concentrate on the football and try to remove any other distractions from it. They’re such a tough, physical team, it’s such a loud place, so it’s a tough place to come.

‎City’s defensive resilience set the tone, with goalkeeper James Trafford making a crucial second-half save to stop Yoane Wissa just before Bruno Guimaraes struck the post. The pressure finally paid off moments later.

‎New £62.5 million signing Antoine Semenyo broke the deadlock, finishing Jeremy Doku’s 53rd-minute cross after Bernardo Silva’s clever touch helped it through.

‎Alleyne said of the former Bournemouth winger, who also scored on his debut in Saturday’s 10-1 FA Cup third-round demolition over League One Exeter, “His qualities are so good, the things he does and can do for us are so, so good and he’s a good person as well, which always helps. He’ll do great things, I’m sure.”

‎If Guardiola was happy with both Alleyne and Semenyo, it was 31-year-old stalwart Bernardo Silva who caught his eye.

‎The Spaniard said, “Bernardo was again…you cannot imagine how much a player is Bernardo Silva.

‎“Hopefully (he’s) going to stay for many centuries, but that guy does what it means to play football and is a competitor. That guy knows all the rules absolutely everything.”