An Instant Reaction to Manchester City 2, Newcastle United 0

The attention of the national media will be on Manchester City's title chase, as it should be, but here the story is that apparently nobody wants to finish third. Arsenal dropped points Saturday by drawing with Norwich City, and as this match finished up Tottenham Hotspur were drawn with Aston Villa with 30 minutes remaining, but Newcastle could not take advantage of the situation.

The first half was rather contentious, with each side laying claim to decent scoring chances, but Citizen supporters went to the break feeling they were the better team. City came out like a squad on a mission in the second half, and though counterattack opportunities were there for the Toon, they simply couldn't unlock the City back 4. Yaya Toure opened the scoring with a perfectly placed shot into the right side of Tim Krul's net. At that point Newcastle's attack actually opened up, and the best chance happened for them late in the game when Shola Ameobi blasted a shot that was blocked by substitute Micah Richards in the box. It wasn't to be, though, as City went on the break time after time, finally finding the net a second time through Yaya Toure's touch.

It was a decent effort from Newcastle, but ultimately City were disciplined in defense and didn't give the Magpies' strikers any room to work with. Everton away is the only remaining hurdle. Newcastle will need a result to finish in the top 4.