Max Alleyne: Man City must forget first-leg advantage in bid to reach cup final

Manchester City youngster Max Alleyne has told his team-mates to forget their 2-0 lead over holders Newcastle as they attempt to book another trip to the Carabao Cup final.

City returned from Tuesday night’s semi-final, first-leg trip to St James’ Park with one foot in the final after goals from new signing Antoine Semenyo and substitute Rayan Cherki loosened the Magpies’ grip on the trophy they lifted last season.

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, who spent the first half of the season on loan at Sky Bet Championship Watford and only returned last week, turned in a mature display alongside Abdukodir Khusanov at the heart of Guardiola’s defence as City kept a clean sheet which laid the foundation for success on the night.

He later revealed he had not expected to start despite injuries to Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol, but relished the opportunity to demonstrate his development 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.”

If defensive resilience provided a platform for success – goalkeeper James Trafford produced a fine second-half save to deny Yoane Wissa before Bruno Guimaraes hit the post – it was £62.5million new boy Semenyo who made the breakthrough when he struck from Jeremy Doku’s 53rd-minute cross after it had been helped on by Bernardo Silva.

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 a competitor. That guy knows all the rules – absolutely everything.”