Eddie Howe calls Newcastle's EFL Cup final run 'huge' but 'no surprise'

Eddie Howe praised Newcastle's significant victory in the League Cup semi-final against Arsenal, emphasizing the importance of learning from their previous experience at Wembley.

In pursuit of their first major trophy since 1969, Newcastle achieved a 2-0 win over Arsenal during a memorable evening at a vibrant St James' Park on Wednesday.

Jacob Murphy's goal in the first half, followed by Anthony Gordon's strike after the break, secured a 4-0 aggregate triumph, propelling Howe's team to their second League Cup final in three years.

Having faced defeat against Manchester United at Wembley in 2023, Howe expressed confidence that the insights gained from that painful experience would serve as valuable motivation for the upcoming final against either Liverpool or Tottenham on March 16th.

"It is huge. The first appearance there was a bit unexpected, but we want to be there regularly, so it's not a surprise this time," he said.

"We are there on merit. Our run has not been easy this year, so we've done the hard yards.

"Hopefully we can learn from the last experience. We have come a long way since then. I would love to think we can go to Wembley and perform better."

The Magpies are bidding for their first major trophy since the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 56 years ago, with their last domestic silverware coming in the 1955 FA Cup.

Despite the high stakes, Newcastle finished the job in nerveless fashion after winning 2-0 at Arsenal in the first leg in January.

Organised superbly by the astute Howe, they out-played Mikel Arteta's side thanks to superb performances from Sweden striker Alexander Isak and England winger Gordon.

Howe acknowledged he had tweaked his defensive system, switching to a back five to nullify Arsenal's set-piece threat.

Arteta had no answers to Howe's tactical masterclass as Newcastle beat the Gunners for the third time this season.

"It was a great night for us. It was a tough game but tactically we were good. The intention was to be aggressive and sometimes when you do that it doesn't always work. Today it did," Howe said.

"You know you are playing against elite players and one mistake can make things difficult. We had to be ourselves. If not then you are on the back foot.

"We do tweak things depending on the opposition. We felt we needed more height in the team, we wanted solidity at the back and we had to change in order to win the game.

"The players followed the instruction to the letter. They deserve the credit."

Newcastle will learn their Wembley adversaries on Thursday as Tottenham seeks to maintain their 1-0 advantage from the first leg at Anfield.

While Howe and his team can anticipate the final, Arsenal faced a harsh reality following their 5-1 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday.

That impressive display had kept Arsenal's aspirations of overtaking Premier League leaders Liverpool alive, who currently hold a six-point lead over the Gunners with a game in hand.

However, just four days later, Arsenal—already out of the FA Cup—saw another potential path to silverware blocked in Tyneside.

"We had momentum in the first half and didn't capitalise. They scored immediately after and the momentum shifts," Arteta said.

"We needed a goal early in the second half and we didn't get that and the opportunity passes.

"They have been more efficient than us in the boxes and that is the difference in the tie."

Arteta, whose squad has advanced to the Champions League round of 16, will take his team to Dubai for a training camp before resuming their campaign against Leicester on February 15th.

"You need to be very efficient. That is what takes you close to winning trophies and today we weren't. Today is painful and tomorrow is a different day."