Arsenal vs Newcastle LIVE: Result and reaction from Carabao Cup as Isak and Gordon give Magpies advantage
Arsenal 0-2 Newcastle: Eddie Howe’s men secured a strong lead ahead of the second leg next month
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Your support makes all the difference.Newcastle United took one step closer to the Wembley with a superb 2-0 victory over Arsenal in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final at the Emirates Stadium.
Eddie Howe named an attacking line-up for the Magpies and they showed their intent from the start with a high press and a willingness to get men into the final third when in possession. Their early dominance threatened to be a false dawn though as Arsenal swiftly played through them to set Gabriel Martinelli up with a brilliant chance to open the scoring only for the winger to strike the post.
Alexander Isak was more clinical at the other end. He ran onto the end of a Jacob Murphy pass to slot past David Raya and give Newcastle the lead before half-time.
After the restart, Anthony Gordon arrived in the box at the right time as Isak had another shot stopped by Raya only for the goalkeeper to serve up an easy tap-in to Gordon. Howe then made changes and set the team up defensively.
Arsenal threw everything at them but couldn’t cut the deficit and will have a tough task ahead of the return leg at St. James’ Park.
Relive the action from the Emirates Stadium with our live blog below:
Alexander Isak speaking to ITV:
“It’s massive. it’s a great result. It’s only the first half. If we don’t go through then this has no meaning. It’s a massive win. I don’t think it’s too much of an individual thing, it’s more a team thing. We’ve been very consistent to create chances.
“It’s difficult to put a finger on but we’ve found out way back to our identity and the basics. It starts with how we defend. the defence and the midfield put their body on the line.”
Eddie Howe on Isak:
“First half he was electric, I thought he played really well. He scored but I just thought his general game was in a really good place. He was feeling his hamstring a bit at half-time so we had to manage him in the second half and that was a big blow to our performance.
“I think we rode our luck at times and I think Martin [Dubravka] played really well and made some really good saves. I thought the set plays in the main we got the small details right. Our mentality to defend our goal with the blocked shots, the heroic pieces of defending that we saw in the last 20 to 30 minutes, it’s great for us for the future.”
Alexander Isak’s ruthless nature punishes Arsenal and reveals where Mikel Arteta’s side must improve
A night that was about whether you could take your chances; for goals, and maybe for finals. The overly cynical might even say it was for showing what you can really do in front of a certain audience, especially in regards to Alexander Isak. Arsenal’s widely reported interest in the Swede added another strand to a narrative-rich Carabao Cup semi-final, and his presence ended up deciding how this 2-0 win went.
Newcastle United would rightly bristle at that being the focus of a match that might end up sending them to Wembley for the second time in three years. Arsenal do still have a second leg in a month to overturn this, but that will be at an intimidating St James Park, where the crowd will see this trophy as being about so much more than this trophy. The Saudi Arabian project has felt like it has needed a lift after a long lull, and this might be it. For all that recent issues had fed a debate over whether the controversial ownership are overseeing the club in the fulsome manner they have other projects, their willingness to spend what they can has given Newcastle one of the finest players in world football right now.
Alexander Isak’s ruthlessness reveals where Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal must improve
Arsenal 0-2 Newcastle: Eddie Howe’s men take the advantage into the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg thanks to their star forward
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe speaking to ITV:
“Very pleased with the players, it was a tough game for us in many respects. We’ve had players struggling at half-time. Really pleased with how we played.”
Newcastle defender Dan Burn, speaking to Sky Sports:
“Very proud, it was always going to be like that in the second half. Too a man everyone defended brilliant.
“To get a result here you need to defend set-pieces, but I thought everyone was brilliant.
“We have had a sticky patch, but we have had a few clean sheets in a row. Seeing the way we defended in the second half was brilliant.
“It’s only a job half done - they have nothing to lose coming to St. James’ Park.”
Newcastle’s Alexander Isak, speaking to Sky Sports:
“I think it comes down to a team thing.
“We have been solid defensively and then we have the quality up front. Jacob [Murphy] assisted me and I tried to be in the right place to finish the attacks.
“We came here with the intention to bring a good result home and we did.
“We have some time to change things, come back and do the same at St. James’ Park.”
Gordon on responding to Brentford loss:
“We weren’t doing it at the start of the season and we weren’t putting work in at the start of the season. We don’t have time to celebrating this one.
“They’re one of the best sides in Europe, it’s only 2-0. We need to stay humble.”
Newcastle winger Anthony Gordon speaking after the game:
“It’s up there. We knew what type of game it would be, they’re dominant at home. It was always going to be a smash-and-grab.
“I think so. I think everyone is in agreement with that. He’s [Alexander Isak] on fire. Even for my goal. I’m just gambling back post. It’s all about attitude. It was unbelievable to a man. I want to mention Dan Burn, he’s been our player of the season for me.”
Good omens for Newcastle
Since 1987-88, this is the ninth time an away team will have held a two-goal advantage after a semi-final first leg, with all eight previous occasions seeing the side progress to the final.
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