Man City affected by FA Cup rule changes after ignoring Marc Guehy’s plea

Josep Guardiola will get a brief reprieve from his defensive injury crisis thanks to FA Cup rule changes

Due to recent rule changes, Marc Gehi will be eligible to play in the FA Cup for Manchester City. City are preparing to face League Two side Salford City in round four on Saturday.

England defender Guehi joined during the January transfer window after the 25-year-old secured a £20m move from Crystal Palace. Guehi adapted quickly to the team and was available for the weekend’s match against Salford City, despite featuring for his former club in the previous round.

He captained the centre-half side in the Palace side that suffered a surprising defeat to Macclesfield last month. Previously, City would have been ruled out for an FA Cup silver medal.

However, rule changes were introduced before this season’s FA Cup, effectively allowing players to appear for multiple clubs, albeit not within the same round of the tournament.

A section of the rulebook states: “A player shall only play for one club in the competition during the same season. However, a player who has played for one club in the qualifying competition and/or the competition itself may play for a maximum of one other club in the competition body (but may play for a maximum of one club in any round of the competition).”

read more: Raheem Sterling blocked from training just one day after joining Feyenoordread more: Man City vs Salford City FA Cup preview, team news and predictions

This is good news for City, who were without defenders John Stones and Josko Gvardiol. Ruben Dias recently made his return to action in the win over Liverpool, coming on as a substitute for Abdukkodir Kusanov, who was initially thought to have suffered a concussion.

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Unlike clubs not being able to use Gehi in the Carabao Cup, the rule change for the FA Cup will be a welcome relief for manager Josep Guardiola. Unlike fellow new signing Semenyo, the England star joined after the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final but was ineligible for the return match against Newcastle United.

Ahead of the cup final against Arsenal, City asked for a change to the rules, but the English Football League rejected the request. However, Guehi could help City progress in the FA Cup.

Guardiola’s team defeated League One side Exeter City 10-1 in the previous match, with new signing Semenho also finding the back of the net. Salford followed up wins against Lincoln City and Leyton Orient with a 3-2 victory over Swindon Town.

Man City’s nearing full strength means a setback for Salford as they look to pull off an unlikely upset at the Etihad Stadium. Karl Robinson’s side last played a game on Thursday, February 5th, with City beating Fulham on Wednesday night.

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“It’s proof that the players have managed to get to this stage,” Robinson said in January after Salford reached the fourth round. “It hasn’t been an easy road so far.

“We have had some very difficult games and all the teams we have played have been in a league above us. Last season we broke the club record of reaching the third round of the cup but missing out on the play-offs by one point or one goal. This year we reached the fourth round and progressed again.”

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