There will reaction from Wembley to follow. Thanks for reading. Congratulations, Newcastle United fans.
Local hero Dan Burn spoke to Sky Sports:
“I’ve had worse weeks! I don’t want to go to sleep because I feel like I am dreaming. I knew Alexis [Mac Allister] wasn’t looking so I could get a jump on him. As soon as I headed it, I knew it was in. I don’t get many so at least I saved it for a big occasion. I feel strange the minute. It is hard to put into words.”
Alexander Isak on Big Dan Burn: “He was brilliant. He sets the foundation for us to be able to perform. It’s amazing and this is just the start. We will see so much more. We are all aware of how much it means.
“For us to be able to give the fans that, it is amazing. First half was frustrating for me but I kept telling myself that my moment would come. When I got the chance, I put it in the back of the net. When you have been without a trophy for so long, it can be in the back of your head. Hopefully it is brighter days ahead.”
Eddie Howe spoke to Sky Sports:
“Emotional, very emotional. It is very unlike me. We knew what was at stake and just wanted to do everyone proud. We were desperate to try and win the trophy after so many years of hurt.
“It had a different feel. We have won the game and everything will be reviewed positively but we prepared well and I was very confident the players would perform. We always make it difficult for ourselves! It was never going to be a 2-0. When the goal went in, I thought it was handball. I couldn’t understand how it was given.”
We wanted to do the football club proud today. We are trying to break new ground and hopefully this is a turning point for us. With set plays, we have worked consistently on certain ones for two weeks for this game.
“Dan [Burn] will be the first to admit, he hasn’t practiced like that! All of the players were magnificent but particularly him. He was a colossus. Both teams were very direct. We dealt with that very well. No-one wanted to make a mistake. There wasn’t a lot of pretty football but we were effective.”
Here’s David Hytner’s report from Wembley.
When the manager took over in November 2021, Newcastle were in the Premier League’s relegation zone. He began by restoring stability, self-respect, and then led them up the division and into the Champions League. The dismantling of Paris Saint-Germain in October 2023 on the night when St James’ Park hosted Champions League football for the first season since 2002-03 will live forever. It was topped by this.
Graeme Hull: “It makes perfect sense that I’d watch Newcastle win the first major trophy in my supporting lifetime on a dodgy WiFi connection 36000 feet above Maryland.”
Enjoy, Graeme.
John Ramsay: “Spurs will win something next. Then there will be a huge tear in the space/time continuum...”
Anil gets in touch: “Listened to the whole game on 5Live, 13 hours away on the other side of the world. At the final whistle I ran around screaming and all the passengers on the boat I’m on in New Zealand thought I’d gone stir crazy. Hard to express to elderly German tourists what it means to a long suffering Newcastle fan. My dad would have been overjoyed. He’s no longer with us but I like to think he was also running around screaming with joy, wherever he is. Maybe not on a boat, though.”
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Joe Meredith gets in touch: “A conflicting feeling as a neutral, what with the Saudi sportswashing. But here’s to all the Toon fans who’ve spoken out against it - they more than anyone should be given the grace to enjoy tonight. Like many, I felt like the Magpies were my second club in the 90s - the firecracker players and exciting football have been long overdue silverware, I think.”
David gets in touch: “Worth mentioning that when we talk about ‘sportswashing’ it is exactly this. Tens of thousands of fans rightfully enjoying their success immune to the conditions that brought them there.”
Newcastle fans will enjoy their moment but those issues cannot be ignored,
Liverpool have taken their walk of pain to collect their losers’ medals. Now it’s Newcastle’s turn. Bruno Guimarães receives the trophy and lifts it with Kieran Trippier. Anthony Gordon has joined the party, too.
Virgil van Dijk, to his credit, congratulated Dan Burn, the hero of the hour. Let’s be frank here, Newcastle were excellent, they wanted it more. Deserved winners. Liverpool’s post-mortem can begin soon.
Richard S: “Watched it in a pub in Liverpool. The landlord switched it straight off - right on the final whistle. Such bad losers!”
Mike IE: “Slot has reaped what he has sown by running his favoured starting XI into the ground.”
Riley Strother: “Words cannot describe this feeling.”
Chris Paraskevas: “What a famous, immortal win, thanks to the most un-Newcastle Cup Final performance of all time: calculated, controlled, ruthless.
“Eddie Howe has earned his place in history for being the first Newcastle manager to manage Geordie emotions perfecrly in a Final: how often has this club fallen over itself at the final hurdle? Too emotional. Too cursed. Too unlucky. Tonight he added the missing ingredient: Professionalism.
“You sensed we were more mature at kick-off. This was our moment and we seized it. Now we can lay to rest the ghosts of 1974, the 90s, 2022 and the 8-0 Hammering against the A-League All Stars. Drink it in Geordies: you earned it.”
Micki Attridge: “They’ll be dancing in the streets of Riyadh tonight!.”
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Richard Morris: “A bit harsh perhaps and I’m a neutral - but given about 3 weeks ago Liverpool were talking about the quadruple, and now they will win one trophy at best - will Slot be viewed as not quite all he was cracked up to be? The Klopp team win the league thanks to their early season form but once Slot works his magic....er they tail off?”
Colum gets in touch: “The look on Federico Chiesa’s face when the announcement of the VAR decision to allow the goal was something to behold. Disbelief at first when he thought it had been ruled offside, then joy.”
“The best day of my life,” says Bruno Guimarães. “This is my second home. We are making history. One day I will leave this club and I want the fans to sing my name like they do Shearer.”
Full-time: Liverpool 1-2 Newcastle
If you never thought you’d see the day, this was it. Liverpool are beaten as Newcastle end 70 years of hurt. Local Hero plays out, and Dan Burn fulfilled that role. Well done, Newcastle. A bad week for Liverpool just got worse.
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90+11 min: That’s it. Newcastle have won a trophy. It’s true!
90+10 min: Here go Liverpool, but they lose it. Joelinton is going to be sent off for throwing Elliott to the ground. Elliott is in pain. No, not sent off? Amazing.
90+9 min: Tonali has a corner but is booked for tieing his shoelaces. Willock forces a throw. Will Liverpool get their chance?
90+8 min: Bruno keeps the ball in the corner. There’s all types of tussles. Chiesa is booked for hacking away. Tonali and Willock shepherd the ball into the other corner.
90+6 min: Chiesa looked amazed to be granted that goal. The Newcastle fans shellshocked. Alan Shearer looked like he had seen a ghost.
Goal! Liverpool 1-2 Newcastle (Chiesa, 90+5)
A goalmouth scramble. Nunez falls over. Bruno loses it, and Chiesa is sent away, and scores. There’s a lengthy, lengthy VAR delay. Oh Newcastle, oh no! They couldn’t, could they. Jon Brooks takes to the mic to announce the goal.
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90+3 min: Eddie Howe on the sidelines, pleading with his players to keep shape, one last tackle, one last interception.
90+1 min: Kelleher has to intervene as Wilson threatens. Peter Drury is doing 1969 now. Bobby Moncur, Willie “Liam” McFaul and all that.
90 min: Jacob Murphy limps off, and Jason Tindalls sends on Emil Krafth to see out eight (8) minutes of stoppage time. What can Liverpool find?
89 min: Jeers as Salah, the magic man, can’t keep the ball in. Wembley Way is probably by now filled with Scouse invective. Their boys just didn’t show. It’s been a chastening week.
87 min: Arne Slot is raging now. He will win the title but his team looks in need of a rebuild. Not easy. Van Dijk looks the most annoyed. He’s been a one-man defence.
86 min: Peter Drury has gone beyond 1974; we’re now living in 1955 when Newcastle last won the FA Cup. Liverpool playing hurry-up offense but being forced back and back and back. Huge cheers as the ball goes back to Nick Pope.
85 min: Newcastle can almost taste the champagne. Liverpool can almost taste the bitterness of an afternoon gone very sour. They’ve never remotely been at it.
84 min: Livramento wins a corner. They will take their time here. The ball eventually nodded into Wilson’s path. He smashes over the bar.
83 min: Willock is quickly involved, setting up Joelinton to smash his shot wide. The Brazilian has had a fine game. Next, Tonali has a shot. Kelleher claims at the second time of asking. Liverpool continue to gape.
82 min: Isak the scorer, takes his leaves, what a fine finish for the second goal. Callum Wilson goes on. Harvey Barnes departs, after a fine showing. On comes the popular Joe Willock.
80 min: Liverpool push on and on, this is better. Schar steps in and smashes away. Salah seeing some of the ball but on the fringes. The Geordie choir sing to kill their nerves. They cheer when Jones smashes over.
78 min: Chiesa wins a free-kick. Everyone up as Szoboszlai whips it in. Big Dan Burn commands the skies.
77 min: Murphy throws himself at a Szoboszlai cross. Every Newcastle kick is cheered, every block.
75 min: The Dutch tradition – Cruyff included – was always to chuck the kitchen sink at it. Pope climbs up to palm away a corner. Then Isak is almost sent away by the excellent Barnes. Liverpool are open, gaping holes.
73 min: Quansah attempts to get it launched. It spins out of play. Here comes Chiesa – 2021 Wembley wizard. Diaz is off for Elliot. Gravenberch is gone, too. What does that formation become? Panic, quite frankly. Slot’s ultra-calm has gone. This is Klopp-ball on crystal meth.
72 min: Justin Kavanagh continues the 1974 tip: “One more goal for the Magpies, along with a clean sheet, and the ghost of 1974 will be forever buried. Then Eddie Howe can gently rib the Reds by saying that football’s not a matter of life and death.”
Liverpool’s revival yet to evidence itself.
71 min: The word is Salah has had three touches in 25 minutes. Jason Tindall has done a right number on him.
70 min: Where are Liverpool? Where are the Liverpool of early season? We’ve not seen them in some time. Gravenberch squirts the ball out.
69 min: Eddie Howe is on the scene when Szoboszlai fouls Bruno. Barnes almost sets up a third. Anthony Gordon has not been too missed. Liverpool clear and Murphy shoots wide.
67 min: Gakpo for Mac Allister is the latest Slot change. Newcastle have nine men on the field then both come on as they have a break, Isak tries to play in Joelinton but overhits.
65 min: Big Dan Burn does a Peter Kay and just smashes it skyward. Two Toon players doon. Joelinton and Isak both receive treatment.
64 min: Oh my! Newcastle almost score a third. Trippier’s ball is volleyed across by Barnes to Isak and Kelleher scoops the ball off the line.
63 min: Liverpool now facing a wall of black and white. Nunez is loose in his touch. Burn’s tackle put him off.
61 min: This could be a long half-hour for the Toon Army. Mac Allister’s corner is headed away. Liverpool now dominating, and Joelinton deflects behind.
59 min: Liverpool’s best attack yet. Jones sets it up and gets on the end. Nick Pope makes a fine save. Tonali is down. He and Bruno smashed into each other as Szoboszlai lays up Jones.
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58 min: Another Newcastle set piece. This time, Van Dijk climbs and heads away.
56 min: Sam Trenery gets in touch: “While I’m normally as happy to decry referees, the FA and the shadow government as the next Liverpool fan, I’m more concerned by the team themselves. We’ve been beyond bad. We’ve been insipid. The players don’t look like they care in the slightest. That’s more infuriating than any marginal refereeing decision.”
55 min: Arne Slot has seen enough. Curtis Jones and Darwin Nunez are coming on. Can Newcastle hold their nerve. Jota departs, he was disappointing. Darwin supplying the random factor. Konate off, which means Gravenberch at centre-back. The Slot button being pushed.
54 min: That was a beauty, a reminder that direct football has its place. Classic wing play and overlap, the nod down and finish.
53 min: Liverpool all over the place. Barnes sends Livramento down the wing, Murphy nods down, and Isak smashes home. What a moment.
Goal! Liverpool 0-2 Newcastle (Isak, 53)
No matter, it’s 2-0, and a great finish. What a noise.
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Newcastle goal ruled out!
51 min: Burn on Mac Allister at this corner. The ball is in the net. Joelinton scoops it in, Bruno in front of the keeper and the ball is poked in by Isak. Goal ruled out – Bruno was interfering with play.
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50 min: Van Dijk is the wall that Newcastle are trying to get round. He’s not impressed with his colleagues. Isak is quiet, the rest are lively. Barnes wins another corner.
48 min: Salah seeing more of the ball already, Liverpool already livelier. Is the Klopp-ball button pushed?
47 min: Nick Pope gets it launched. Newcastle push high and Liverpool go away. Joelinton goes all the way back to clear danger.
Back away at Wembley...
46 min: Newcastle get us underway. Arne Slot off his bench early on. So many things to improve.
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David Wood: “Sitting in the pub, mixed fans and we could all see that coming. Poor game plan to allow Burn to be up against Mac. Need a big half time talk.”
Sub-optimal stuff from Liverpool.
Today’s other football.
Rupert gets in touch: “Newcastle have deservedly their noses in front. But, but, but, why is Macca marking the big man Burn? Whose idea is it? Van Dijk scored the winner last season because Mudryk was marking him, it was a clear mismatch. “
Justin Kavanagh: “Poor old Supermac: There was a trivia question in the 70s along the lines of “what’s brought to a Cup Final every year but never used?” The correct answer was the loser’s ribbons; the wag’s answer was Malcolm MacDonald (he played in a couple more finals in 1976—for Newcastle—and 1978—for Arsenal—but lost them too).”
Kari Tulinius: “I’m not a fan of Newcastle, but it would take a heart of stone not to cheer for Northumbrian lad Dan Burn scoring a goal in the league cup final for the Magpies. “
JBL: “Pretty sure the actress who played Spuggy was from Sunderland (Farringdon area), so not sure she will be celebrating with Ant and Dec.”
Kevin Metcalf: “Why is it, with offsides now not necessarily being flagged on the pitch, that a goal resulting from an offside would (in theory) be disallowed, but a corner is not? Newcastle have just been allowed to gain a corner from a player receiving the ball in an offside position and this seems worse than before the advent of VAR.”
Richard McGahey: “Trippier and Diaz “clash?” Diaz high in the air, Trippier runs under him and undercuts him, pushing Diaz with his arm, again no attempt to play the ball.”
A bit worrying for Liverpool if their fans are already looking to officialdom. Their team has been poor so far.
Half-time: Liverpool 0-1 Newcastle
On the balance of play, and desire, Newcastle deserve their lead, and it came from a predictable source. Eddie Howe has been working on the set pieces and Liverpool’s defender allowed Dan Burn, the biggest man on the field, the aerial supremacy.
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45+3 min: Salah – the superman – springs into action. But Diaz shanks wide. That’s it for the half.
45+2 min: Dec’s delighted. So is Spuggy, wherever she is. Donna Air, too. Newcastle’s is a deserved lead.
45+1 min: Trippier’s corner, Van Dijk and Konate nowhere near and Burn nods home. What a noise! Their first cup final goal since 1976 and Alan Gowling.
Goal! Liverpool 0-1 Newcastle (Big Dan Burn, 45+1)
The big man, from a corner….
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44 min: Liverpool will be relieved when half-time comes. Their midfield is losing out. Perhaps Newcastle will have tied up after the break. Ian Rush, Kenny Dalglish and Steven Gerrard all seen in the crowd. Kenny managed both clubs and son Paul, beside him, was on the books of both,
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42 min: Richard Hirst on 1974: “Oh John, how can it be before you were born. I remember when Supermac was playing for Fulham, as a left back! Before he went to Luton and onwards. If only he’d stayed at Fulham he might have become something.”
40 min: Did Trippier handball in the box? Looked it. VAR waves it away. Let it flow. “Arms out for balance,” says Stuart Atwell. That would have been harsh. Liverpool haven’t played well enough to get a helping hand like that.
39 min: Multiple clash of heads between Joelinton and Quansah, Szoboszlai too. All will be OK to continue.
38 min: Has Tripper twanged his hamstring? He’s rubbing it as if he has. The veteran has been throwing himself into anything.
36 min: Liverpool just can’t get going. Newcastle: can they keep this up? Lots of hacks clear as Liverpool clear their lines but then Pope comes from his box again. Watch out for that. Joelinton then muscles Quansah. Huge roars. “Geordies,” they sing.
35 min: Barnes on the burst. His ball is headed off Robertson and the rebound is smashed – off Robertson – and behind. From the corner, Trippier swings the ball in, Big Dan Burn climbs highest but Kelleher will not be beaten by that.
33 min: Tripper and Diaz clash. A warning to Tripper from Brooks that there will be no more of that. Beyond that, let it flow.
32 min: Toon corner. Trippier takes, Van Dijk powers it away. Big Dan Burn and Kelleher climb for the second ball. The keeper claims it.
30 min: Liverpool corner, smashed by Robertson, read by Joelinton at the near post. Next, Robertson, back at left-back, sends away Diaz, and Pope cleans out the ball. A foul? No, Diaz was offside in any case.
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28 min: The face of Jason Tindall is pictured on Ant McPartlin’s scarf. Or is it Dec? It’s definitely Jase, hero of the Geordie nation.
27 min: Liverpool try to sit on the ball and Isak almost steals the ball. Quansah has to take evasive action. Salah has been quiet.
25 min: Konate has to hack behind but Murphy could have played it earlier to Isak. Liverpool reeling? They have to hurry away a corner after a Kelleher flap. The keeper eventually lies on the ball.
23 min: Newcastle the better team. Barnes sends Isak away, and Tonali gets the reverse pass, then shoots wide. No clear-cut chance yet.
21 min: Toon corner: Big Dan Burn and Schar go forward. It’s taken short and Isak can only foul. Ant and Dec pictured in the crowd but separately. Alan Shearer, too. No signs yet of Jimmy Nail, Sting or Spuggy.
19 min: A brief slowdown, but Newcastle still go long. Schar gets it launched Isak has been starved. They will hope this is not a Supermac 1974 when the great man hardly got a kick. (Yes, it was before I was born.)
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17 min: Oof, a cruncher from Mac Allister on Joelinton. No booking? Let it flow, says the referee. Joelinton is hurt and making adjustments.
16 min: Liverpool a little shabby? Nigel Guest has suggestions: “As a Liverpool fan, I worry that Slot has run Salah and Gravenberch intothe ground, and to a lesser extent. MacAllister and Szoboszlai. I’m concerned about this match and the tail-end of the league, though I think we’re so far ahead we can’t lose.”
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15 min: Huge tackle by Quansah on Livramento, and the ball spills to Murphy. A sight of goal? He saw too much glory. It flies way over the bar.
14 min: Salah’s pass is intercepted and Bruno is hacked down by Jota and Diaz. It’s frenetic stuff. More frenetic than Arne Slot would prefer.
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13 min: Big Dan Burn – England man – goes long, too. Newcastle not holding the ball too well after that bright start. Bruno almost sends Barnes through. Tonali is robbed as he looks to drive play on.
11 min: Big Dan Burn leaves a mark on Mac Allister. Deliberately? Possibly? Heavily? Not really. Good physical stuff here, which Eddie Howe will be happy with.
10 min: Big Dan Burn squeezes out Salah to uproarious cheers. It’s all down one flank, that of Salah, Livramento, Barnes and Quansah. The posh seats get that view in the first half.
8 min: Mac Allister’s kick is poor. Nick Pope kicks the ball out of hand – more old-school stuff. The ghosts of Steve Ogrizovic and Martin Hodge are happy. Another long ball, by Liverpool, can’t be reached by Salah.
7 min: Robertson collides with Tripper and gets a foul awarded by referee Brooks. No yellow, it was barely a foul.
6 min: Free-kick taken short and Barnes skips to the byline and Liverpool clear behind hurriedly. Promising from Newcastle. Liverpool not at it. Nick Pope rushes out to hack clear.
5 min: Livramento speeds on the overlap, and Alexis Mac Allister chops him down.
3 min: Arne Slot has opted for the type of suit Bill Shankly would approve of. Quansah has to face down Harvey Barnes, not a bad replacement for Anthony Gordon. A pure footballer on his day, full of talent and speed.
2 min: Early Newcastle attack, Murphy down the right but the ball – aimed for Isak – is headed away. Diaz and Trippier take each other on. A key battle, surely.
1 min: That’s nine defeats at Wembley they need to overturn. Newcastle get it launched from a free-kick. Old-school, and welcome. Liverpool have some aerial work to get through.
Away we go at Wembley!
Liverpool take the kick-off. Can Newcastle overturn their hoodoo?
The players take to the field and the noise is deafening, drowning out the PA announcer and even Peter Drury seems muted. Carabao’s chief suits are being introduced to their players by Virgil van Dijk and Bruno Guimarães. Rick Parry, EFL chief, former Liverpool suit, is in the mix.
The national anthem – sung in X-Factor cursive style – booed by Liverpool fans, sung lustily by Geordies.
Eddie Howe also spoke to Sky: “We are so well supported and we want to do our supporters proud with our performance.
“Our preparation has been good. We played Monday [against West Ham] and then we have had a period of time to plan for the game. Our preparation has been consistent with how it normally would be. The players are aware of the size of the game.”
“The biggest change [since 2023] has been the hotel. Our hotel has been out of London. If anything we were absorbing supporters too early in our build-up [in the 2023 final].”
Travel Lodge or Premier Inn: much of muchness, right?
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Another big miss for Newcastle will be Lewis Hall, who has made such strides this season at left-back. Tino Livramento has a huge task in replacing him. Mohamed Salah will be forever coming off his right.
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Chris Paraskevas gets in touch: “G’Day John, Hope you’re well! This is the 2nd Cup Final of my 20+ years following this Ccu̶r̶s̶e̶d̶ club and this time around things feel a little different. For starters, last time I was drunk, dehydrated and dressed in a full magpie costume by 3am (bathroom visits were so awkward). Secondly, the air of resignation and trademark Doom-Spiral of our Cup Final approaches seems to have given way to some bizarre sense of calm.
“No-one is really expecting anything this time around and I hope the players can keep their emotions in check and please avoid previous Cup Final errors (emotional drainage, bird suits, too mch Guinness etc.) There is nothing to lose (other than immortalization, lifelong glory and the mood of an entire city) so just enjoy it!”
Patrick Crumlish gets in touch: “Honestly, John, not sure that if Gordon and Trent weren’t both playing, that Gordon wouldn’t just give TAA the run-around. Unless memory deceives, he won that duel in the December league match. Quansah should be solid today.”
Arne Slot had a chat with Sky Sports:
“I don’t think it means that much different with the formation, but it definitely is different if you have Trent who can play the ball wherever he wants to. Jarell [Quansah] is good at set-pieces and this is what we saw against PSG. Everyone brings their own quality, but we won’t play a different style because we miss out on a player.”
“[Newcastle will go all in, like they were at St. James’ Park. Letting us know that they are there. At Anfield they were waiting a bit more. At St. James’ Park they were constantly at us and that’s what you can expect in a final.”
“ If you work for Liverpool every game is important. I know it’s a final and it is special to be in this stadium. Looking forward to it, but the nine games that are coming are just as important.”
Konate is back for Liverpool, Kelleher will play in goal. Jarrell Quansah replaces Trent Alexander-Arnold. Jota leads the attack.
An unchanged team for Newcastle from their 1-0 at West Ham. How they will rue the absence of Anthony Gordon with Quansah replacing Trent.
The teams
Liverpool: Kelleher, Quansah, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson, Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Diaz, Jota, Salah. Subs: Alisson, Endo, Nunez, Jones, Gakpo, Chiesa, Elliott, Tsimikas, McConnell
Newcastle: Pope, Trippier, Schar, Burn, Livramento, Guimaraes, Tonali, Joelinton, Murphy, Isak, Barnes. Subs: Dubravka, Wilson, Targett, Krafth, Osula, Willock, Longstaff, Miley, Neave.
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In the Premier League today, important for Newcastle, this.
Full-time: Fulham 2-0 Tottenham. Marco Silva’s team up to eighth.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 29 | 42 | 70 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 29 | 29 | 58 |
| 3 | Nottm Forest | 29 | 14 | 54 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 29 | 16 | 49 |
| 5 | Man City | 29 | 15 | 48 |
| 6 | Newcastle | 28 | 9 | 47 |
| 7 | Brighton | 29 | 6 | 47 |
| 8 | Fulham | 29 | 5 | 45 |
| 9 | Aston Villa | 29 | -4 | 45 |
| 10 | AFC Bournemouth | 29 | 12 | 44 |
| 11 | Brentford | 29 | 5 | 41 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 28 | 3 | 39 |
| 13 | Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | 12 | 34 |
| 14 | Everton | 29 | -4 | 34 |
| 15 | Man Utd | 28 | -6 | 34 |
| 16 | West Ham | 29 | -16 | 34 |
| 17 | Wolverhampton | 29 | -18 | 26 |
| 18 | Ipswich | 29 | -34 | 17 |
| 19 | Leicester | 28 | -37 | 17 |
| 20 | Southampton | 29 | -49 | 9 |
Look at the reception Newcastle players got in 1974 after *losing*. The same was true in 1976 when they lost the League Cup final in 1976 to Manchester City.
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Bruno’s been a brilliant signing for Newcastle.
“Seventy years is too much to wait,” says Guimarães, who describes the meeting with Liverpool as “our World Cup final”. “Hopefully we can finally bring a trophy back to Newcastle.”
Is this Virgil’s last final for Liverpool?
“I enjoy playing, I enjoy leading the boys out, I enjoy being there for each and every one. I feel that responsibility even more than ever, maybe because I’m getting older slowly. I feel fine. We’ll see what happens in the future.”
A tale of two strikers?
The orthodox view of Núñez’s Liverpool career is that he is simply a poor fit for what Arne Slot is trying to do: a cat trapped in a grand piano, a maverick in a team seeking immaculate control, of emotions as well as the ball. Virtually all his metrics are significantly down from the Jürgen Klopp era: goals, expected goals, expected assists, key passes, dribbles, touches, shots and shots on target. This season Liverpool perform a goal a game worse when he is on the pitch than when he is not. A big Liverpool clearout is expected this summer and the word is they will listen to a serious offer for Núñez.
Isak’s teammates in Sweden’s squad, who should surely be challenging at the business end of tournaments with an attack that also includes Viktor Gyökeres and Dejan Kulusevski, report that he has noticeably hit fresh heights in the past year. “They also say he’s exactly the same person,” Gustafsson says. “His success has not changed him at all.”
Kevin Keegan spoke to Barney Ronay in 2012 about that Liverpool 3-0 Newcastle United game
That was a cup final between two big-supported teams so the atmosphere was unbelievable. Newcastle have a cup tradition that goes back to the 1950s and a lot of supporters remembered that back then in the 1970s. What I remember most was at the hotel Shanks just pinning up this article that Malcolm MacDonald had written [saying Newcastle were going to beat Liverpool]. No team talk, that was it, he just stuck it up and walked out. We felt like schoolkids going up to read what it said. It was a great piece of motivation. We were a club that didn’t shout out about what we were going to do, we just did it, so it was right against what we believed in. We were a very good side and it was a bit disrespectful to be honest. You could argue [MacDonald] was trying to motivate his team and being positive and upbeat. But Shanks used it very cleverly. It was one of the most one‑sided cup finals ever in the end. MacDonald had one shot from about 30 yards that flew miles over the bar, but I can’t remember Clem [Ray Clemence] having a save to make. With my goal, when I hit it I didn’t think it was going to go in, I thought the keeper would make a great save. In the end he pushed it into the corner, which probably made it look even better.
If Liverpool v Newcastle conjures up images of 4-3 Premiership matches of the 1990s, the clubs meeting at Wembley remind of one event only, 51 years, when Brucey – Forsyth, not Grobbelaar – held sway. And so did Kevin Keegan, for Liverpool, not Newcastle. The FA Cup final of 1974.
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Preamble
Should you have been in London’s fashionable West End, you will almost certainly have heard an accent to remind of Vera, The Likely Lads or Byker Grove. Anyone shopping for some high-end pottery or handmade shoes in Covent Garden will certainly have heard the Geordie accent. To follow 2023, it’s another big day oot. Now, can it go better than the last time? They’re up against Liverpool, the holders. There will have been a few accents from Brookside, The Black Stuff and The Liver Birds but Liverpool are a trophy-collecting machine again. That said, there’s the scars of losing to PSG to cope with. Howay the lads? Or tears on Tyneside?
Kick-off is at 4.30pm join me.
