Newcastle United are heading to Wembley.
Indeed, Newcastle fans can start dreaming again, with Eddie Howe’s side having booked their spot in the Carabao Cup final.
A thoroughly impressive Newcastle beat Arsenal 2-0 in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg on Wednesday night, running out 4-0 winners on aggregate. On Thursday, Liverpool ensured they would meet Howe’s side at Wembley by smashing Tottenham 4-0 to win 4-1 on aggregate.
Beating the Reds will be difficult. They remain Newcastle’s bogey team, although the 3-3 draw between the pair at St James’ Park back in December certainly proved Howe’s team can compete.
Certainly, when Alexander Isak is playing well, Newcastle will fancy their chances against any team around. Isak bullied Arsenal in the semi-final and of course scored a fine goal against Liverpool during the aforementioned draw.
Looking ahead to the final, pundit Jamie Redknapp made a prediction.
Alexander Isak vs Virgl van Dijk prediction made ahead of Carabao Cup final
It’s hard to think of a single striker in the game who would actively want a battle with Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk.
The Dutchman is arguably the greatest defender in world football and has looked imperious all season despite ongoing speculation about his future.
Still, Sky Sports pundit Redknapp predicted Isak could indeed cause Van Dijk problems at Wembley, such is the level of his form right.
“We spoke a lot about Virgil but there is one player that Virgil can have problems with – and that’s Alexander Isak,” he said on Sky Sports.
“Mind you, everyone has problems with Isak. That will be an absolute blockbuster, those two up against each other.”
Considering the goal Isak scored against Liverpool – in which he beat Van Dijk before firing past Caoimhin Kelleher – there are certainly reasons to be optimistic.
READ MORE: Who is Alexander Isak? Age, Height, Family, Nationality, Roots
Alexander Isak’s record against Liverpool is impressive
Newcastle legend Alan Shearer believes Isak is world class and, frankly, it’s hard to disagree with that.
It feels as if Isak always scores or makes some kind of impact in the biggest games and his record against Liverpool on an individual level is impressive, even if Newcastle’s as a whole isn’t.
| Games | Goals | Assists |
| 5 | 3 | 1 |
In five games against the Reds, Isak has scored three goals while assisting another. Worryingly, they haven’t translated into any wins against the Merseyside giants, but at least he does his part.
Hopefully, Isak can turn up again at Wembley.
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