Newcastle United have taken a big step towards the Carabao Cup final with an excellent 2-0 win over Arsenal in the first-leg of the semifinal on Tuesday.
The Magpies have never won the competition, though they came close to lifting the trophy two years ago when Manchester United beat them 2-0 in the final at Wembley Stadium.
Newcastle now have a perfect opportunity to reach their second final in three seasons by avoiding defeat or losing by a one-goal margin in the second-leg.
Alexander Isak continued his impressive form in Tuesday’s away game, as he netted the opener in the 37th minute with a composed finish after being set up by Jacob Murphy.
Arsenal threatened to level the scores, but lack of finishing let them down. Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz were particularly culpable for missing two good opportunities.
Then in the 50th minute, Anthony Gordon swept home the rebound after Isak’s shot was parried by David Raya.
The Gunners piled on the pressure late on, but Newcastle held out to take a healthy lead back to St James’ Park in the second-leg.
Gordon praises his teammate for superb display
The Magpies forward Gordon was left hugely impressed with Isak after the 25-year-old scored his 14th goal in 15 games.
The England international called his teammate “humble” and “very unselfish” in his post-match interview.
Asked about Isak’s performance, he said (per BBC Sport): “Very good. He is the best in Europe, probably right now, with the form he’s in.
“The best quality he’s got is that he’s so humble.
“He is not scared to pass the ball. He’s very unselfish, and his best ability is his raw ability on the ball.”
Isak was on the pitch for 65 minutes and he had 25 touches, completing 13 of his 15 passes.
The Sweden international completed 100% of his long balls and registered two key passes.
He also had two shots on target and completed two of his three dribbles.
Isak may likely be rested for the FA Cup game with Bromley at the weekend, but he should return for the home clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers.
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Stats from Sofascore
