Pep Guardiola and Eddie Howe(Image: 2025 Getty Images)

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola intends to make full use of the club's forthcoming free midweeks as he prepares his side for the Premier League title race with Arsenal.

And that could spell trouble for Newcastle United, with Eddie Howe's side not only embroiled in a intense run of fixtures, but also facing something of a crisis of confidence.

Newcastle's Premier League game at Tottenham last night was their 12th match of 2026 already, with another five games in February taking the total they will have played in the first two months of the year to 18.

It's a run which is testing the Magpies' squad to the limit, with the two-legged Champions League play-off tie against Qarabag adding to their already heaving schedule.

United will face Guardiola's Man City at the Etihad on Saturday, February 21, just three days after they make the long journey to Azerbaijan in what will be a 5000-mile round trip.

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