3,200 Geordie’s made the trip to the South Coast on a cold Tuesday night as Newcastle had to dig deep to see off the Saints in the first leg of their Semi Final match. It was a match of plenty chances and drama which saw two disallowed goals, one sending off and a nice bit of play from Alexander Isak leading up to Joelinton finding the back of the net.
Nathan Jones made four changes to the side that got beat at Aston Villa. Carlos Alcaraz and Mislav Orsic were handed their debuts and there were places in the starting line-up for Sekou Mara and Moussa Djenepo.
Eddie Howe showed faith in the side that drew against Crystal Palace at the weekend with no changes to the starting eleven. Martin Dubravka was cup-tied so he was replaced on the bench by Karl Darlow.
Willock had the first chance of the game after two minutes, Almiron picked the ball up near the halfway line before making a promising run and laying it off to the former Arsenal midfielder who unleashed an effort from outside the box but it blazed over the bar rugby style. Longstaff fired a cross across goal just a minute later but there was no one to make the most of it. With ten minutes to play before half time, Tripper whipped a beautiful cross into the box but Willock can’t control his effort and once more it blazes into the stands. Joelinton thought he put his side in the lead five minutes before half time after converting from close range but the ball allegedly strikes his arm before he tucks it away so the referee ruled it out. VAR took a look at it and backed the referee. What do you expect with Stuart Attwell and Andre Marriner in charge! Southampton finally “tested” Pope in the Newcastle goal just before half time, Alcaraz fired low from distance but Pope easily pushed it away. After five minutes added time, the referee blew his whistle for half time. HT Score 0-0.
Newcastle continued the pressure right from the start of the second half, Almiron cut one back for Longstaff after driving down the left but the latter couldn’t control his effort. Joelinton missed a golden opportunity less than ten minutes into the second half from just outside the six yard box. Just a minute or two later, former Newcastle United striker Armstrong fired over after taking on a couple of defenders. 63 minutes played, Southampton had a chance to take the lead but Pope smartly denied Adams with his legs after Botman accidentally played him onside. Pope was called into action again a couple of minutes later, a free kick was whipped into the box which fell to Adams who spun and fired at goal but the keeper was equal to it. Eddie Howe turned to his bench as we approached 70minutes played, Isak and Saint-Maximin coming on to replace Wilson and Willock. Joelinton, the Brazilian who cost £40million, fired home from close range after missing a sitter a few minutes earlier, lovely set up play from Isak who sprints down the right hand side and launches a ball across goal. Newcastle’s lead didn’t last long though and Southampton equalised….or so they thought! Armstrong tucked it away but like Joelinton’s strike in the first half..VAR ruled it out. Karma! Southampton were reduced to ten men with just under five minutes to play, Caleta-Car tripped up Saint-Maximin as the Frenchman stormed his way towards the box and the defender had no choice but to concede the foul and take the second yellow. Trippier sends the resulting free kick over the bar. Isak nearly added a second and sealed the game for the visitors as the game reached the final stages but Bazunu forced the Swedish striker to run wide and shoot from a tight angle but only into the side netting. Full Time Southampton 0 Newcastle United 1.
Sutty’s Full Time Thoughts: Newcastle should have won that game comfortably, the amount of chances that they had to see this game off was ridiculous. The first half wasn’t their best performance, sloppy passes meant lost possession and a distinct lack of composure when it came to unleashing shots at goal. Callum Wilson had another quiet game where he didn’t offer much, Joe Willock and Sean Longstaff couldn’t tell the difference between a rugby conversion and a football goal…the midfield duo couldn’t keep their efforts down. Joelinton ran his socks off once more, yes he missed a sitter in the second half but he made up for it with his goal in the second half. Nick Pope made some crucial saves this evening to keep us in the tie…what a signing he has been, yet another clean sheet! Karma did bite back in the most wonderful of ways, after Joelinton’s goal was ruled out for offside, shitbag Adam Armstrong thought he had equalised just a few moments after Joelinton’s goal but VAR ruled it out for handball, serves him right for celebrating like a dick against his boyhood club I suppose. Anyway, the lads head back to Tyneside with the important advantage and if they play like the way they did tonight in the reverse fixture at St James’ Park in a weeks’ time then a place in the final will be ours for sure. Alexander Isak must start, he was a threat from the minute he came on and to be honest, Wilson could do with a rest, it could be exactly what he needs to get himself focused and back on form. Roll on next Tuesday! Eddie Howe’s Semi Final Mags!!
What’s Next? Both sides face each other for their next game, the Second Leg of the Semi Final of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday 31st January at St James’ Park, KO at 8pm live on Sky Sports Main Event.
Southampton Line Up: G Bazunu, K Walker-Peters (87, J Bednarek), Lyanco, D Caleta-Car, M Salisu, I Diallo (81, R Lavia), C Alcaraz, J Ward-Prowse ©, M Djenepo (45+3, A Armstrong), M Orsic (57, S Edozie), S Mara (57, C Adams).
Southampton Bench: W Caballerro, J Bednarek, R Perraud, R Lavia, A Maitland-Niles, S Edozie, M Elyounoussi, A Armstrong, C Adams.
Newcastle United Line Up: N Pope, K Trippier ©, F Schar, S Botman, D Burn, B Guimaraes, J Willock (67, A Saint-Maximin), S Longstaff, Joelinton, C Wilson (67, A Isak), M Almiron (78, J Murphy).
Newcastle United Bench: K Darlow, J Lascelles, J Lewis, J Manquillo, M Ritchie, E Anderson, J Murphy, A Saint-Maximin, A Isak.
Match Officials: Stuart Attwell (Referee), Darren Cann & James Mainwaring (Assistant’s), Thomas Bramall (Fourth Official), Andre Marriner (VAR), Nick Hopton (Assistant VAR).
@jsuttonwrites
24.01.2023