Newcastle United continued their upward trajectory as a club since the takeover by the Saudi consulate as they reached their first final in several years and a chance to win their first trophy since 1995 when they saw off Southampton 2-1 on Tuesday evening in the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-final.
Newcastle’s last major cup final was in 1999 in the FA Cup, and their League Cup final was in 1976. The revolution was already on as the Magpies slowly returned to the big stage after the Saudi take, which saw former Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe taking charge.
Big signings followed this, and now Newcastle is sitting in UEFA Champions League places Premier League table and are set for their first trophy since 1995.
In the first leg, Newcastle went to Saint Mary’s Stadium to secure a 1-0 win which made the route to the final easy for Newcastle as a second-half strike from Joelinton was enough in the first leg.
However, it was the turn of Sean Longstaff to become the hero in front of the home fans on Tuesday as he got the first goal after the first five minutes while adding another in the 21st minute of the game.
The midfielder tagged the night a special and promised the Toon army that it was just the start of things to come.
“It’s a really special night, not just for me but for everyone in Newcastle. It has been so long since a night like this. It’s unbelievable. All the energy left my body after I celebrated. We don’t want to stop. We want to keep going, and this is just the start.” Longstaff said.
Che Adams would pull one back for the visitors on the 29th-minute mark, but it was not to be for the Saints, even after Bruno Guimares was sent off with eight minutes left on the clock.
Newcastle United will now await what looks like a formality as Manchester United hosts Nottingham Forest on Wednesday in the second leg of the second semi-final. Manchester United won the first leg 3-0 at City ground.
Daniel Ademiju Idowu
