Manchester City continued their impressive scoring spree to rout Burnley 5-0 in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday.
The victory meant Manchester City made it 30 goals and seven straight wins in three separate competitions since the turn of the year.
Another Premier League side, Wolves, required a 93rd-minute equaliser from Matt Doherty to draw 2-2 with League One Shrewsbury Town.
While Newport County, from League Two, also scored in stoppage time against Championship (second-tier) side Middlesbrough to clinch a 1-1 draw that also means a replay.
There was, though, never much chance of a shock at the Etihad from the moment Gabriel Jesus put City ahead with a fine strike after 23 minutes.
Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Aguero also scored, with a Kevin Long own goal completing the demolition.
The win, City’s eighth in succession since losing to Leicester on Boxing Day, comes three days after they reached Wembley in the League Cup and means Pep Guardiola’s side, who trail leaders Liverpool by four points in the Premier League, are competing for trophies on four fronts.
“It is our eighth victory in a row and of course we have scored a lot of goals,” said Guardiola, who is seeking City’s first FA Cup trophy since 2011.
“Everyone wants to help the team, but there is always something to improve — today they (Burnley) had one or two chances which we gave them.”
Four-times winners Wolves will be delighted to have secured a replay after fighting back from two goals down against a side who are 54 places below them in the English football pyramid.
Defeat would have been doubly embarrassing because Shrewsbury are managed by Sam Ricketts, a former Wolves captain who was a regular member of the side that won the League One title in 2014.
Ricketts seemed to have hatched the perfect gameplan when goals from Greg Docherty and Luke Waterfall had the home fans anticipating a rare foray into the fifth round.
But Wolves, who knocked out Liverpool in the third round, fought back with goals from Raul Jimenez and Doherty to keep their names in the hat for Monday’s draw.
READ ALSO: Naomi Osaka wins Australian Open final to seal back-to-back grand slams
Our players can take a lot from that, said Ricketts. “Neither side will have wanted a replay but we will have another game. Don’t write us off yet, we went to Stoke and won in a replay.”
Newport will also approach their replay full of hope after thrilling their 1,200 travelling fans with a scrambled equaliser from Matthew Dolan, a former Boro academy player who never played a first-team game for the club.
The replay ensures a return home for Tony Pulis, who hails from the same Newport suburb as County manager Michael Flynn.
The Welsh club, who beat Premier League side Leicester City in the previous round, are seeking to reach the fifth round for the first time since 1949.
Newcastle and Watford made clear where the cup ranks in their list of priorities by making 18 changes between them for their all-Premier League meeting at St James’ Park, which the visitors won 2-0 with goals from Andre Gray and Isaac Success.
It is only the second time in 10 seasons that Watford have got this far.
Brighton & Hove Albion could only draw 0-0 at home to Championship side West Bromwich Albion.
While League One side Doncaster Rovers reached the fifth round for the first time in 63 years after beating League Two Oldham 2-1 with two goals from Ben Whiteman, his winner a controversial penalty in injury time.
League One side Portsmouth have an impressive FA Cup tradition and remain in the reckoning after their 1-1 draw with QPR, for whom Nahki Wells equalised Lee Brown’s opener.
Oli McBurnie scored twice as Championship side Swansea beat Gillingham, of League One, 4-1.
NAN
