Football betting tips: FA Cup
1pt Bernardo Silva to be carded at 11/4
1pt Nico Gonzalez to be carded at 3/1 (bet365)
0.5pt Bernardo Silva and Joelinton to be carded at 7/1 (bet365)
0.25pt Bernardo Silva, Nico Gonzalez and Joelinton all to be carded at 33/1 (bet365)
*All bets settled in 90 mins
Quite fittingly Newcastle and Manchester City meet for the FIFTH time this season in the FA Cup FIFTH round.
City have won three of the first four meetings, including both legs of their Carabao Cup semi-final, but Newcastle did win the home league game earlier in the campaign, and given their current top-flight position of 12th, targeting silverware may trump a high Premier League finish in terms of priorities.
That could mean Eddie Howe taking this competition very seriously, though a Champions League last-16 first leg against Barcelona following this gives him plenty to ponder from a selection standpoint.
Manchester City are in the same boat, though they must travel to Spain to face Real Madrid, and Pep Guardiola always goes for trophies. This game will be competitive, and it will be feisty if recent meetings are anything to go by.
The four matches between the pair this season have delivered 5.5 cards per game, while last season's league meeting at St. James' Park brought eight cards too, so this is a fixture that can explode.
The stakes are high and we have a decent referee appointment in Sam Barrott (3.73 cards per game) so it's time to delve into the player card markets.
Now with all of these picks we are at the mercy of team selection, but I'm hoping we get our two main players participating at some point in the 90.
The first and main bet as a single is BERNARDO SILVA TO BE CARDED at 3/1. The Portuguese maestro is City's leading card collector this season, picking up 12 in all competitions at an average of 0.40 per 90.
He also loves getting carded against Newcastle, likely to do with their midfield being so physical and dynamic. Silva has picked up a yellow in four of the last six head-to-heads he's played in, including three of three this season when being deployed in a deeper central role.
JOELINTON TO BE CARDED is a bit short to back as a single at 7/4 but I'll happily DOUBLE him up with SILVA for a 7/1 shot. The Brazilian has also been booked 12 times in all competitions this season at an average of 0.47 per 90 which explains the price.
He also loves being carded against City, picking up a yellow in all of the last four head-to-heads he's played and seven of his last eight against City. Both Joelinton and Bernardo have been booked in the same game in all of the last three meetings the pair have started together.
I think NICO GONZALEZ will certainly start with Rodri likely to be rested, and he looks an appetising price at 3/1 TO BE CARDED. He's picked up seven cards across league, Carabao Cup and FA Cup outings this season at an average of 0.39 per 90, so the price is huge.
He was booked against Newcastle in the semi-final second leg despite City being comfortably ahead on aggregate, and while he wasn't booked in his league start against them, he did commit three fouls at St. James'.
Hopefully all three of these players start but keep an eye on team news in a game that could kick off in terms of cards.
Odds correct at 10:45 GMT (6/3/26)
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