Newcastle seize control of tie as Isak inspires win at Arsenal

Newcastle seized control of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie against Arsenal as the in-form Alexander Isak inspired a 2-0 victory in a pulsating first leg at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal bombarded the Newcastle goal for long periods of the contest but missed a succession of chances, mostly from set-pieces, with only three of their 23 shots directed on target.

Newcastle, by contrast, were ruthless, with Isak opening the scoring with his 10th goal in nine games when he pounced on poor Arsenal defending from a long ball in the first half.

The Sweden international was heavily involved in Newcastle’s second, too, exchanging passes with Jacob Murphy then firing a diagonal shot towards goal which David Raya could only push into the path of the onrushing Anthony Gordon soon after half-time.

Newcastle had not won away to Arsenal since November 2010 and were without key duo Bruno Guimaraes and Fabian Schar due to suspension but defended doggedly to hold on to their two-goal advantage as the hosts continued to flounder in front of goal.

Kai Havertz, selected to start up front ahead of the in-form Gabriel Jesus, missed their best chance, sending a free header wide from close-range, but he was not alone in his poor finishing, with the hosts failing to capitalise on a series of set-piece chances.

The two-goal defeat leaves Arsenal, already six points behind Liverpool in the Premier League, with a huge task to reverse a two-goal deficit in the second leg at St James’ Park on Wednesday February 5. Newcastle, meanwhile, continue to dream of ending their 55-year trophy drought, their winning run extended to seven games in all competitions.

Tottenham host Liverpool on Wednesday evening in the first leg of the other semi-final, live on Sky Sports at 8pm.

Story of the match in stats…

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