Newcastle United players celebrate Jacob Murphy's goal during their League Cup semi-final second leg match against Arsenal.
Image: Paul Ellis / AFP
Eddie Howe hailed Newcastle United's "huge" League Cup semi-final win against Arsenal as the Magpies boss vowed his side would learn from the pain of their last visit to Wembley.
Chasing a first major trophy since 1969, Newcastle swept to a 2-0 victory over Arsenal on a memorable night at a raucous St James' Park on Wednesday.
Jacob Murphy's first half opener and Anthony Gordon's strike after the interval sealed a 4-0 aggregate success that sent Howe's team to their second League Cup final in the last three seasons.
Newcastle were beaten by Manchester United at Wembley in 2023, but Howe is confident the lessons from that heartbreaking loss will provide valuable experience and motivation in the final against Liverpool or Tottenham on March 16.
"It is huge. The first appearance there was a bit unexpected, but we want to be there regularly, so it's not a surprise this time," he said.
"We are there on merit. Our run has not been easy this year, so we've done the hard yards.
"Hopefully we can learn from the last experience. We have come a long way since then. I would love to think we can go to Wembley and perform better."
The Magpies are bidding for their first major trophy since the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 56 years ago, with their last domestic silverware coming in the 1955 FA Cup.
Despite the high stakes, Newcastle finished the job in nerveless fashion after winning 2-0 at Arsenal in the first leg in January.
Organised superbly by the astute Howe, they out-played Mikel Arteta's side thanks to superb performances from Sweden striker Alexander Isak and England winger Gordon.
Howe acknowledged he had tweaked his defensive system, switching to a back five to nullify Arsenal's set-piece threat.
Arteta had no answers to Howe's tactical masterclass as Newcastle beat the Gunners for the third time this season.
"It was a great night for us. It was a tough game but tactically we were good. The intention was to be aggressive and sometimes when you do that it doesn't always work. Today it did," Howe said.
"You know you are playing against elite players and one mistake can make things difficult. We had to be ourselves. If not then you are on the back foot.
"We do tweak things depending on the opposition. We felt we needed more height in the team, we wanted solidity at the back and we had to change in order to win the game.
"The players followed the instruction to the letter. They deserve the credit."
Newcastle will discover their Wembley opponents on Thursday when Tottenham try to defend their 1-0 first leg lead at Anfield.
While Howe and company can look forward to the final, Arsenal were brought down to earth with a bump after Sunday's 5-1 rout of Manchester City.
That swaggering performance kept alive Arsenal's hopes of catching Premier League leaders Liverpool, who are six points clear of the Gunners with a game in hand.
But just four days later, Arsenal - already eliminated from the FA Cup - found another potential route to silverware curtailed on Tyneside.
"We had momentum in the first half and didn't capitalise. They scored immediately after and the momentum shifts," Arteta said.
"We needed a goal early in the second half and we didn't get that and the opportunity passes.
"They have been more efficient than us in the boxes and that is the difference in the tie."
Arteta, whose team are through to the Champions League last 16, will take his squad to Dubai for a training camp before they return to action at Leicester on February 15.
"You need to be very efficient. That is what takes you close to winning trophies and today we weren't. Today is painful and tomorrow is a different day."
AFP