Match ends, Norwich City 0, Manchester City 3.
NorwichNorwich City0Man CityManchester City3
A Sergio Aguero-inspired Manchester City eased to victory in their FA Cup third-round tie at fellow Premier League club Norwich.
Aguero surged past Sebastien Bassong, sidestepped Russell Martin and poked in a shot to put the visitors ahead.
The Argentine striker then teased the home defence before laying the ball off for Kelechi Iheanacho to side-foot in.
Manchester City were dominant and Kevin de Bruyne jinked his way to goal before powering in a low shot for their third.
Reaction to Saturday's FA Cup third-round games
Aguero looking sharp
Aguero has had his injury troubles this season but Blues boss Manuel Pellegrini has predicted the forward will return to his best form as his side challenge for four trophies.
The Argentine is proving true to his manager's words as he showed the qualities of pace, power and finishing prowess which make him so feared.
Apart from his opening goal, he played a one-two with Iheanacho before having a first-time shot palmed wide by keeper John Ruddy.
Aguero teased Norwich's defence before setting up Iheanacho for his side's second and Pellegrini will be left hoping his star striker can now stay fit.
Canaries left singing the Blues
Norwich and the visitors made seven changes each but, while Pellegrini's team retained the look of a strong side, the Canaries struggled to cope.
Conceding an early goal did not help and the second for the visitors left the Carrow Road crowd almost silent as their team offered them little to cheer.
Norwich showed little sign of being able to mount a comeback. The closest they came to scoring was when Graham Dorrans had a shot was palmed wide by visiting keeper Willy Caballero, who also tipped over a late Kyle Lafferty header.
However, it appeared more of a damage-limitation exercise for manager Alex Neil's side, who can now concentrate on their battle to stay in the Premier League.
Man of the match - Sergio Aguero
Manager reaction
Norwich boss Alex Neil: "In the first half, we didn't retain the ball well enough and good teams will punish you. We played better in the second half but the damage had already been done.
"We will forget this game as of now. Our bread and butter is the league."
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini: "It was a very good performance. From the beginning we were very aggressive
"Sergio Aguero scored a beautiful goal.
"One of the merits of this squad is to be involved in all the competitions with the injuries that we have had."
'Worthy of Messi'
Former Manchester City defender Danny Mills on BBC Final Score: "It was too simple for Manchester City - I was expecting Norwich to put on a better show.
"But that first goal from Sergio Aguero was exceptional - he beats three or four defenders before finishing. It was worthy of Lionel Messi."
What next?
Norwich will visit Stoke in a the Premier League on Wednesday, while Manchester City host Everton on the same night.
Line-ups
Norwich
Formation 5-4-1
- 1Ruddy
- 3Wisdom
- 24Bennett
- 5MartinBooked at 48mins
- 6BassongSubstituted forLaffertyat 72'minutes
- 23Olsson
- 8HowsonSubstituted forRedmondat 63'minutes
- 21MulumbuSubstituted forO'Neilat 64'minutes
- 18DorransBooked at 84mins
- 32Odjidja-Ofoe
- 10Jerome
Substitutes
- 2Whittaker
- 9Mbokani
- 13Rudd
- 19Lafferty
- 20Andreu
- 22Redmond
- 28O'Neil
Man City
Formation 4-4-2
- 13Caballero
- 5Zabaleta
- 30Otamendi
- 26Demichelis
- 11Kolarov
- 15Navas
- 6Reges
- 18Delph
- 7SterlingSubstituted forDe Bruyneat 61'minutes
- 72IheanachoSubstituted forCelinaat 85'minutes
- 10AgüeroSubstituted forClichyat 70'minutes
Substitutes
- 1Hart
- 3Sagna
- 17De Bruyne
- 22Clichy
- 59Celina
- 61Horsfield
- 77Humphreys-Grant
- Referee:
- Mike Dean
- Attendance:
- 24,507
Match Stats
Home TeamNorwichAway TeamMan City
- Possession
- Home44%
- Away56%
- Shots
- Home10
- Away17
- Shots on Target
- Home3
- Away11
- Corners
- Home8
- Away6
- Fouls
- Home10
- Away7
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Norwich City 0, Manchester City 3.
Post update
Attempt missed. Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe (Norwich City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left following a corner.
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Corner, Norwich City. Conceded by Gaël Clichy.
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Attempt missed. Cameron Jerome (Norwich City) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Nathan Redmond.
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Aleksandar Kolarov (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Gary O'Neil (Norwich City).
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Foul by Fernando (Manchester City).
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Kyle Lafferty (Norwich City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Attempt saved. Bersant Celina (Manchester City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Kevin De Bruyne.
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Foul by Fernando (Manchester City).
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Martin Olsson (Norwich City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Attempt missed. Cameron Jerome (Norwich City) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe with a cross.
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Attempt saved. Bersant Celina (Manchester City) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Kevin De Bruyne.
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Fabian Delph (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Post update
Foul by Kyle Lafferty (Norwich City).
Substitution
Substitution, Manchester City. Bersant Celina replaces Kelechi Iheanacho.
Post update
Attempt missed. Kelechi Iheanacho (Manchester City) left footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Fabian Delph.
Booking
Graham Dorrans (Norwich City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Post update
Aleksandar Kolarov (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
