Carabao Cup

Newcastle head to Southampton on Tuesday in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie; the Magpies have not won a major honour since their FA Cup ...

I reckon the weakened team that lost to Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup was down to the fixture schedule. He made big changes for the FA Cup trip to Sheffield Wednesday and Newcastle were sent tumbling out - only their second defeat of the season. It was a similar story against Leicester in the quarter-final. Ninety per cent of the fans I've spoken to would rather win the Carabao Cup than finish in the top four. I think he could freshen things up slightly by bringing in Allan Saint-Maximin and/or Alexander Isak from the start, but that wouldn't be weakening the team. The team on the park still have work to do, and the fans understand that. Football is a matter of life and death to many Newcastle fans, it's ingrained in their DNA. That's why, irrespective of what happens at St Mary's, next Tuesday at St James' Park promises to be a very special occasion. Generations of Newcastle fans haven't seen their side lift a trophy; a full generation hasn't even watched them compete in a semi-final. The fans are enjoying going to matches, the city is awash with black and white. If the club's new owners were to end their trophy hoodoo so early into their reign, and earlier than planned or expected, who knows what could follow in the coming years. It's maybe not the free-flowing football witnessed under Keegan, but Howe has instilled a sturdy, pragmatic element that most teams are finding almost impossible to break down.