James McAtee Hits Hat-Trick as Jack Grealish Ends Goal Drought in Manchester City’s 8-0 FA Cup Rout of Salford
James McAtee shone with a clinical hat-trick, and Jack Grealish ended a year-long goal drought as Manchester City demolished Salford 8-0 in the FA Cup third round.
Grealish, who hadn’t scored for City since December 2023, broke his barren spell early in the second half, winning and converting a penalty to make it 4-0. Pep Guardiola’s side had already asserted their dominance, wrapping up the match before halftime.
Jeremy Doku set the tone with a curling effort to open the scoring, followed by Divin Mubama’s debut tap-in and Nico O’Reilly’s composed finish, giving City a comfortable 3-0 lead at the interval.
Grealish’s penalty just after the break sparked a relentless second-half display. McAtee’s sharp near-post finish brought up his first of the night before Doku added his second with a calmly slotted penalty after Curtis Tilt handled his shot.
City’s hunger showed no signs of waning. McAtee doubled his tally by capitalizing on a deflected Phil Foden shot, and later completed his hat-trick with a composed strike to seal a commanding victory.
Guardiola’s team was unyielding throughout, delivering a statement performance against the League Two side as they progressed emphatically into the next round.
