A heavily rotated Manchester City side survived a handful of scares - and an injury blow - to overcome League Two outfit Salford City and book their place in Monday’s FA Cup fifth-round draw.
The seven-time winners, who had cruised past Exeter City in the previous round, made a perfect start when Alfie Dorrington turned the ball into his own net inside six minutes.
But despite the early breakthrough, City struggled to find fluency after making nine changes to the starting XI.
Their afternoon was disrupted further when defender Max Alleyne was forced off injured in the 22nd minute, and Salford gradually grew in confidence.
Former Liverpool midfielder Ben Woodburn drew a smart save from James Trafford before Brandon Cooper headed narrowly wide from a corner just before the interval.
The visitors continued to threaten after the break, with Kelly N’Mai firing straight at Trafford as City laboured through a disjointed display.
With Erling Haaland absent, Pep Guardiola turned to his bench, introducing Antoine Semenyo, Nico O’Reilly and Marc Guehi in search of control.
It was Guehi who delivered the decisive moment, scoring his first goal for the club to finally settle City nerves.
The England defender reacted quickest after goalkeeper Matthew Young could only palm a cross into his path, calmly slotting home to double City’s lead and end Salford’s resistance.
Guehi’s appearance was notable in itself.
Having featured for Crystal Palace earlier in the competition, he was only eligible to play following a recent update to FA Cup regulations ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Under the revised rules, players may represent one additional club in the competition, provided they do not play for two teams in the same round.
The win extends City’s remarkable FA Cup home record to 17 straight victories since their 2015 exit to Middlesbrough, a run that includes 77 goals and 11 clean sheets.
Yet this was far from a vintage showing from a side chasing a fourth consecutive FA Cup final.
Salford, co-owned by Gary Neville and David Beckham, remained competitive until late on and will take encouragement from their display as they push for promotion from League Two.
For City, there were still positives amid the struggles.
John Stones completed his first start since November without issue, while Trafford - deputising for Gianluigi Donnarumma - impressed with several solid saves as he eyes a role in next month’s Carabao Cup final against Arsenal.
Ultimately, it was Guehi’s late intervention that ensured City avoided embarrassment and moved one step closer to another Wembley run.
