Newcastle United booked their place in a first major final in 24 years by overcoming Southampton 2-1 at home on Tuesday in their Carabao Cup semifinal second leg to seal a 3-1 victory on aggregate.
Newcastle had earned a 1-0 away win in the first leg last week with a late strike from Joelinton and local boy Sean Longstaff got them off to an ideal start in the return by opening the scoring in the fifth minute and then striking again in the 21st.
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Che Adams gave Southampton some hope with a bolt from the blue later in the first half and in the second half fellow striker Adam Armstrong had a glorious chance to level the score on the night but was thwarted by goalkeeper Nick Pope.
Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimaraes was shown a straight red card in the 82nd minute after a VAR review for a studs-up tackle on Samuel Edozie but Eddie Howe’s side survived playing the final stretch of the match with 10 men.
Newcastle will play either Manchester United or Nottingham Forest in the final at Wembley on Feb. 26, with United holding a 3-0 lead ahead of the second leg on Wednesday at Old Trafford.
It will be the Magpies’ first final since they lost 2-0 to United in the FA Cup showpiece in 1999 and their second appearance in the League Cup final, having lost to Manchester City in 1976.
They will be bidding to win their first trophy since the 1955 FA Cup.