Pep Guardiola is advocating for Marc Guehi to be eligible for Manchester City's Carabao Cup final clash against Arsenal. Despite Manchester City securing their place in the final with an aggregate victory over Newcastle United, Guehi, a recent signing, is currently ineligible to play.

Guehi's ineligibility stems from EFL rules stating that he must have been registered before the start of the semi-final tie against Newcastle. The defender's move from Crystal Palace occurred after the first leg, thus preventing his participation. Adding to the irony, Guehi scored a stoppage-time equalizer against Arsenal in the quarter-final while still with Crystal Palace, forcing a penalty shootout.

Guardiola has voiced his disagreement with the rule, questioning why a player the club has invested in cannot participate. He plans for Manchester City to appeal to the Football League, hoping they will reconsider the rule. He told Sky Sports that he hopes they can convince the Carabao Cup that Marc can play in the final, because he doesn't understand why he cannot play. He added that the club makes a big investment to pay a player who belongs to them, and doesn't understand why he cannot play.

While Guardiola acknowledges the difficulty in changing the rule, he emphasizes the importance of Guehi's potential contribution. Despite the circumstances, Guardiola remains focused on the final and the opportunity for his players, especially those who haven't experienced such a final with the club.

Manchester City beat Newcastle United 3-1 in the second leg of their semi-final tie on Wednesday, sealing a 5-1 aggregate success after triumphing 2-0 at St James' Park two weeks ago. Omar Marmoush netted twice and Tijjani Reijnders joined him on the scoresheet to effectively end the tie within 32 minutes.

City has reached the EFL Cup final on 10 occasions, level with Chelsea and Manchester United, with only Liverpool (15) doing so on more occasions. City won the competition four times in a row between 2017-18 and 2020-21.

Newcastle's manager, Eddie Howe, expressed his disappointment as his side's Carabao Cup defence ended. He said that it is painful, they loved the ride they had last year - it was an incredible experience and they were desperate to have it again.