Football: Newcastle’s 1-0 lead can be a tricky advantage: Saints boss Jones

Newcastle United winger Jacob Murphy sarcastically waving off Southampton defender Duje Caleta-Car after he was sent off four minutes from time in the first leg of their League Cup semi-final at St Mary's last Tuesday. PHOTO: REUTERS

NEWCASTLE – Southampton manager Nathan Jones cautioned that Newcastle United’s 1-0 League Cup semi-final, first-leg lead “can be a tricky advantage” ahead of the reverse leg on Tuesday.

He said ahead of the clash at St James’ Park: “With the greatest respect, it (1-0) is an advantage, but it can be a tricky advantage.

“We can’t go there and be cagey or anything, and that could play into our hands as well because they’re a good side, a fantastic side, but it’s evenly poised.

“We have to do things right and make sure we start positively, and be our best. We’ll be aggressive, we want to go after the tie and we’d really like to get the first goal. If we can get the first goal, then a lot of things can change, and a lot of things will change.

“The tie is open, the tie is still alive. We have to be the best version of ourselves.”

Magpies striker Callum Wilson is wary that one of his teammates has given the Saints that extra motivation to be the best version of themselves.

Winger Jacob Murphy sarcastically waved off Southampton defender Duje Caleta-Car when he was sent off four minutes from time at St Mary’s, and a clip of that interaction has since gone viral.

Asked about the incident by West Ham United forward Michail Antonio on the BBC’s The Footballer’s Football Podcast, Wilson said: “He’s a funny character. For him, coming on a sub and giving the team what they need with tracking back, that just summed up his character.

“The guy’s been sent off and he’s waving him off the field, he’s like that every day giving jokes out. He’s funny. It’s made a bit of a thing on the Internet.

“We were just laughing, but it will probably give them a bit of motivation going into the second leg, which we want to limit. We’ve still got a job to do at St James’ Park. We’ll back ourselves, but it is going to be a tough game.”

Caleta-Car has served his suspension and will be available for the game. Juan Larios, Valentino Livramento and Alex McCarthy will miss out while Moussa Djenepo is an injury doubt.

But the Saints will be boosted by the return of several absentees from the first leg – talismanic captain James Ward-Prowse, starters Gavin Bazunu and Mohammed Salisu as well as new signings Carlos Alcaraz, Mislav Orsic and James Bree.

Newcastle’s latest acquisition Anthony Gordon will not be available as he is cup-tied. The 21-year-old winger completed his transfer from Everton, which could eventually cost Newcastle £45 million (S$73.1 million), on Sunday.

Said Magpies boss Eddie Howe: “He’ll give us a lot. He’s a young player with huge potential to have a big impact on our season. Very quick, dynamic player. He’s versatile and can play on both sides. He will add something different for us.”

That point of difference will not be on offer on Tuesday and Howe has urged his team to express themselves in their “season-defining game” to reach the League Cup final for the first time in nearly half a century. They last won a major domestic Cup in 1955.

Said Howe: “You have to look at it as an independent game. Yes, we have a 1-0 lead, but if you focus on that too much before the game or that becomes part of your psychology, then you’re in trouble.

“You go into protection mode and we don’t want that. We want to express ourselves in the game and we have to look at it as a league game.

“We’re a game away from a final, which would be an amazing moment for us, but we haven’t achieved it yet and we’ve got a lot of work to do to get there, so it’s about staying in the moment, not getting ahead of ourselves...

“It is going to be potentially a season-defining game, although we are not trying to focus on it that way.”

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