Newcastle United have the chance to book a spot at Wembley Stadium when they face Arsenal on Wednesday evening.
The Magpies currently boast a 2-0 advantage after winning the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at The Emirates at the start of January.
Eddie Howe has rallied Newcastle fans to produce a brilliant atmosphere at St James’ Park with the club just 90 minutes away from reaching another cup final.
Alexander Isak starred against Newcastle in the first leg, and the Swedish star will hope to continue his scoring streak against the Gunners on Wednesday evening.
Newcastle will also need a strong performance from their midfield trio, although Joelinton is a doubt after being spotted in a knee brace midweek.
Arsenal expect ‘aggressive tactics’ from Newcastle United
Newcastle blew Arsenal away in the first leg with the Magpies scoring either side of half-time before defending resolutely to pick up a superb win.
The Gunners published their match preview on Wednesday morning ahead of the 8pm kick-off, and the North London side took a swipe at Newcastle’s tactics.
Within the preview, it reads: “We [Arsenal] have registered just one shot on target in each of our last two away games at St James’ Park as the Magpies disrupted our flow inside the middle third with aggressive tactics, making the game stop-start in nature.
“Howe’s team will do their best to play this way again, allowing us lots of possession – in the first leg we had 70%, and in those two away losses it was 59% and 64%. Blocking off central areas, they forced us into lots of hopeful crosses which played into their hands.”
Howe will not need to motivate his players for such a big clash, but if they need any extra fuel then Arsenal’s “aggressive” swipe will do just that.
Newcastle United’s atmosphere against Arsenal
Back-to-back home defeats has generated some anxiety among the fanbase for Wednesday’s clash, but under the lights of St James’ Park fans can make a real difference.
After Howe’s plea to fans, Bruno Guimaraes urged fans to create a fiery atmosphere similar to the one against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
Howe is expected to make changes against Arsenal with Joelinton still an injury concern, but Newcastle will still field a very strong side.
Howe is desperate to win the Carabao Cup and end Newcastle’s trophy drought which makes Wednesday’s match one of the biggest this season.
If Arsenal are expecting an “aggressive” game from Newcastle, that’s exactly what they’ll get.
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