Newcastle United

Nat Hayward
BBC Sport journalist

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game at Ipswich (15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Joelinton is "a little bit battered and bruised" and has "had a few stitches" after being taken off against Brentford with a bloodied ear. He will not be available for Saturday's game but will "hopefully be fit for the week after".

• On being drawn against Arsenal in the Carabao Cup semi-final: "We've had some good games against Arsenal in the last couple of years so we'll look forward to that. That's something on the horizon for us to really look forward to. We're all excited by that."

• He believes the win over the Bees can start a positive run: "There is a good feeling around the team at the moment. I'd like to think we're building some momentum but proof will be in what we deliver on Saturday."

• There have been "very loose discussions" about January transfer activity: "There hasn't been many discussions in great depth on January and that's because we've got a lot of games. I don't think that's our main focus at the moment, certainly not mine. But of course we're aware January is around the corner and we'll need to be reactive and ready."

• The Magpies will be training on Christmas Day: "It's an intense schedule for the players. When you're in this industry, you know that the Christmas period is slightly different but we enjoy it and the games around Christmas do have a unique atmosphere. They have a special feel."

• On opposite number Kieran McKenna and Ipswich: "He's a top manager - what he's done with Ipswich is incredible. A dramatic, steep rise going through the leagues with near enough the same group of players - it speaks volumes for his abilities to develop players and get the best out of each and every one of them. Even the games they've lost this season, they've been in all the games. Very tight matches, very competitive team."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Southampton could sell academy graduate Tyler Dibling, 18, if they are relegated from the Premier League, with Newcastle and Manchester United interested in the English midfielder. (Football Insider), external

Meanwhile, Saudi Pro League side Al-Shabab are interested in a cut-price deal for Newcastle's 35-year-old Slovakia goalkeeper Martin Dubravka. (The I), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

Image source, Getty Images

The draw for the Carabao Cup semi-finals has been made, with Tottenham paired with holders Liverpool and Arsenal set to face Newcastle.

The two-legged semi-final ties will take place in week commencing 6 January (first leg) and week commencing 3 February (second leg).

Spurs completed the line-up for the last four with their victory over Manchester United on Thursday.

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your thoughts after Wednesday's Carabao Cup quarter-final between Newcastle and Brentford.

Here are some of your comments:

Newcastle fans

Howard: Newcastle United played really well and thoroughly deserved the win. I thought Sandro Tonali was man of the match with Bruno Guimaraes a close second. Anthony Gordon is now playing consistently well. A good game and by far the best team won.

Euan: Second great performance of the week. We dominated midfield with Tonali looking so classy in that number-six role. How good were his two goals? Howe finally has the balance right with this midfield and it's showing. Bring on the semis! I fancy us against anyone over two legs.

Simon: This game was on par with the Liverpool game - it had determination, passion and creativity. Every player was brilliant and professional. Shame about the bookings and losing Fabian Schar and Bruno but you cant have it all!

Wardy: Much better again. The hunger and intensity were there and we looked balanced. I'd like to see Alexander Isak being more proactive when the team presses but overall, it gives us hope that we can finally kick on.

Brentford fans

Jay: It's cost me the best part of £500 including travel and overnight stay. We were promised a really strong team. It's our third top level quarter final in my 47 years as a supporter and the management is more worried about three points on Saturday. What is the point?

Peter: Disjointed and lacking in any real belief that they could win with the side Thomas Frank put out. Sometimes it is hard to know exactly where he is trying to go with his tactics.

Paul: So poor away from home yet again. Some of Frank's decisions seem strange to me but then I'm not a manager. All along he's said we'll go strong in the cup and then changes so much. We're a real Jekyll-and-Hyde side: when we're good, we're reallygood but when we're bad, we're really bad.

Namish: The starting line-up was far too weak, even after Frank promised a strong team. Not starting Bryan Mbuemo or Mikkel Damsgaard harmed us, coupled with Ethan Pinnock's injury, and we never had a chance

Image source, Getty Images

Newcastle defender Dan Burn says team-mate Sandro Tonali's "real composure" makes him suited to the slightly deeper role he occupied during Wednesday's Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Brentford.

Italy midfielder Tonali, 24, scored the opening two goals of the 3-1 victory and controlled the midfield for large periods in an impressive display.

Manager Eddie Howe says Newcastle are finally "starting to see the best" of their £55m signing who has returned this season after a 10-month ban for breaching betting rules.

"He [Tonali] is great - he's just so calm," Burn told BBC Radio Newcastle. "He's one of those players who never seems to get too excited or too down. He's got that real composure about him.

"I think you can see his quality - one-touch passing, he's always looking to go forward and he does a great job defensively.

"It is great for me when you have got someone in there who can take on the information you give him from a defensive standpoint. I think he has does a great job with that."

When the Carabao Cup final is played in March, it will be 70 years since the Magpies last lifted domestic silverware but Burn believes his side have the quality to reach another showpiece occasion after losing to Manchester United in the 2023 final.

"It's something to look forward to," he said. "We have got a lot of games until then but we fancy ourselves over two legs against anyone so we will see who we get."

Listen to the full chat and hear from Howe on BBC Sounds

Image source, PA Media

Not having to balance European football going into the Carabao Cup semi-finals is a "big advantage" says former Magpies winger Chris Waddle.

On Wednesday, Eddie Howe's side booked their place in the last four alongside Arsenal, Liverpool and either Manchester United or Tottenham with a comfortable win over Brentford.

"The win will give Newcastle a lot of confidence," Waddle told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast. "If they can now put a nice little run together going into the semi-final then they will be in a good place.

"When you're a team who plays on the front foot and you have a lot of talented footballers, you need confidence and results. Scoring and creating breeds more confidence.

"That's what we saw from Newcastle a while back. When they were challenging for the top four, that is what they were all about and they lost that.

"But, it seems to be coming back.

"The advantage they have going into the semi-final is all the other teams at this stage are all involved in Europe. Is is more games for them to test their squads and they can get injuries and have multiple priorities.

"With Newcastle, it is seeing how high they can go in the Premier League and then they can have a free hit at the two cups.

"This is a big advantage as well. Newcastle are in a good position."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Wolves, Crystal Palace and Leicester City are all interested in signing 30-year-old Newcastle United and Paraguay forward Miguel Almiron on loan in January. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Image source, Getty Images

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live: "Really pleased. It was a good performance from the players. Every game brings a new challenge and Brentford were what we thought we would be - a strong team.

"I thought we scored some really good goals. It was great to see Sandro [Tonali] score the two that he did. Just a really good feeling about the group at the moment. We are building in confidence all the time.

"We are starting to see the best of him [Tonali]. The tweak in position has definitely helped him, he is a lot more comfortable when he is deeper on the pitch. He is showing all the qualities that we knew when we signed him. It is just about finding the right balance for him and the team.

"The midfield wins and loses you games, it goes without saying that it is such an important area of the pitch. It was good to see him [Tonali], Bruno [Guimaraes], Joelinton and Joe Willock all playing well today.

"The balance of the team is good. We have players playing in their chosen positions and playing well. We look creative again and a high number of shots and chances to score.

"Disappointed with the bookings and to lose two key players in Bruno and Schar [for the semi-final] but it goes with the territory. We are competitive and encourage the intensity so you can't have everything."

Were you at the game or following from elsewhere?

Have your say on Newcastle’s performance

What did you make of Brentford’s display?

Come back to this page on Thursday to find a selection of your replies

There are three Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday.

• Arsenal v Crystal Palace 19:30

• Newcastle v Brentford 19:45 - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Southampton v Liverpool 20:00 - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

All kick-off times GMT

Follow all the action and reaction here

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for one thing - good or bad - that no-one is talking about regarding Newcastle United.

Here are some of your comments:

Peter: The partnership between Lewis Hall and Anthony Gordon has started to flourish and could be vital for both club and country for the next 10 years. A testament to Eddie Howe and the coaching staff.

GD: What people are not talking about is how much they moaned about 'why have we bought Lewis Hall and we're not playing him?' And: 'If he's not good enough, why have we bought him?' etc. For a lot of last season there was constant complaining about our recruitment. Not so vocal now, of course. Those doing similar regarding Will Osula should maybe bear this in mind. Have a bit of faith in the recruitment team and Eddie's ability to develop players into elite athletes

Duncan: I can't help worry whenever Nick Pope is between the sticks as he has always been suspect. He can be a good shotstopper, but the rest of his game is questionable at best. He very rarely catches simple shots, his positioning is suspect and some of his decisions outside the box are lunacy.

Westy: I've seen many people blame Howe, but I think it's important to remember what he's done for the club. For me the blame lies with profit and sustainability rules. We've seen what happens to teams who try to keep to one system. The other teams work them out and find ways to counter their play. Teams like Manchester City are able to buy in new players to tweak their style of play. I've seen City make some transfers and wondered why they need that player. but it's to offer something new. That's something Howe has been starved of.

Liam: Through all the hysteria about poor form etc, we're still only three points off sixth and four points off Man City. There's just under two thirds of the season to go and we're in another League Cup quarter final. The naysayers and the doom and gloom merchants need to rein it in.

Richard: Alexander Isak is definitely going and so might Bruno Guimaraes along with several other players in a bid to raise £200 million to spend on about four or five young developing players Who will thrive under Eddie Howe and take the club forward and make the squad worth a lot more over the next few years?

Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Chelsea and Stuttgart are interested in PAOK and Greece Under-21 international Stefanos Tzimas, with the 18-year-old forward impressing on loan at Nurnberg. (ESPN), external

Want more transfer news? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Three wins, two draws, two defeats. So reads Newcastle's record since the start of November.

Indeed, it has been difficult to work Eddie Howe's side out over the season so far - and that is why they are stuck in 12th, but only five points off the top four.

We have heard about numerous different topics from Magpies fans this season and you do know your club best, so we need your help again.

Tell us, what is the one thing - good or bad - that is going under the radar at the moment.

Have your say - and come back on Wednesday for a selection of your replies

Image source, Getty Images

Lewis Hall has been a "shining light" in Newcastle's inconsistent season, says boss Eddie Howe.

The left-back struggled for regular game time while on loan with the Magpies last campaign, but has had a real breakthrough this term since making the move permanent, having played in every game for the club so far.

He has also started 15 of those 19 matches across all competitions and provided two assists.

While Newcastle's form has been somewhat indifferent, Hall's performances have been a point of consistency for the side.

"He has played really well this season. He has been very consistent," Howe said.

"He has been a real shining light in that aspect by being the same Lewis, home or away. For someone so young that is hard to do.

"His technical delivery has been outstanding, building attacks, his final ball can improve, but great to see him get two assists so far.

"Defensively he has been pretty good, but there are still areas to improve and develop. He's moving in right direction, but for someone so young his maturity levels have been really good."

The 20-year-old boyhood Newcastle fan joined the club from Chelsea on a season-long loan deal in August 2023 and the move was made permanent for a fee of £28m in July 2024.

Asked about this season's Hall compared to the player of the last campaign, Howe said: "They are very different players.

"With any young player you need a degree of patience, from everyone around them too.

"There is a path of development, whatever age, when you are trying to get into the team. You are developing your game, you cant just wait, so when you get in the team you can stay in.

"We encourage development [in young players] all the time, we work hard to try to improve them."

Charlotte Robson
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

In keeping with the theme of the season (inconsistency), Newcastle responded to a terrible display at Brentford with one of their more complete performances in beating Leicester City 4-0 on Saturday.

That Leicester were poor does not matter - because we have been unable to exploit technically bad teams all season.

What the weekend has done is give fans back a modicum of confidence as we go into a vital week for our season - Carabao Cup quarter-final, then Ipswich, then Aston Villa.

We seem to be finding our best starting XI, if you subscribe to that idea, and they have proven they can play together. I have previously talked about Sandro Tonali and if he fits into this squad. Well, it turns out he does - very effectively!

I want to turn my attention to Lewis Hall - a powerhouse on the left and a player who is so exciting to watch.

It is apparently the rule that when you talk about a younger player you mention their age, so... Hall is 20. Despite this youth, he is turning into one of the best, if not the best, left-back in the country (and has already been called up by England).

One of the reasons Newcastle could dominate at the weekend was because of how dangerous their left flank was. This was in no small part because of Hall.

When we got him from Chelsea, Blues fans were gutted and told me he was a huge loss for them. It took him a long time to get into our squad, but he is now undroppable.

His ability to push up the pitch, intelligence in reading the game, and work-rate are all integral to Newcastle's prospects of staying in the cup and moving up the table.

It will be interesting to see our defensive options when Sven Botman returns - but moving Hall out of position should not be one of them.

Find more from Charlotte Robson at the True Faith: Newcastle United Podcast, external

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has been speaking to the media before Wednesday's Carabao Cup quarter-final game against Brentford (kick-off 19:45 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Eddie Howe confirmed that, from Saturday's match, they currently have a "clean bill of health".

• On Sven Botman returning for the Under-21s on Monday night: "He seemed in a really good place and it's always a big step, playing your first game. He looked good on the pitch, his movement was good. It was typical Sven. He's a massive player for us and we've missed him but he's still got a little bit to go before he's available for selection."

• The Magpies boss is still expecting the defender to be unavailable for first team selection until "the end of December to the beginning of January", however, they are "still on track with the plan".

• Having recently lost 4-2 to opponents Brentford in the Premier League, Howe said his side "fell below our levels, especially defensively" in that match but they know the Bees' have "various threats for us to nullify" if they want to win the quarter-final.

• He said the inconsistency of Newcastle's season is "a frustration for all of us. We don't want to take two steps back each time [we win]", but they "know the importance of this game, it is not lost on any of us and we want to see that consistency in performances".

• On importance of winning club's first major trophy in 69 years: "The willingness has been there from other [Newcastle] teams, but we want to be the one who gets over the line and to achieve something special. But winning these competitions is difficult, we won't take anything for granted. We know if we can hit correct levels of performance then we can be a match for anyone."

• Howe does not believe there has been a "lowering of expectations" for silverware at the club with current financial rules and he always likes to think "the impossible is possible, especially with my players - I wish them to believe we can achieve anything."

• On if associated party transaction rules have made it more difficult for Newcastle to go for a trophy like the Premier League title: "I would say it has a dramatic effect on the speed of that journey. I can't deny that that has dramatically changed due to the rules. You can feel that change, especially as people have got to grips of PSR and reality of it."

• He added: "There is nothing more sobering than the thought of points deduction to changing what you have to do to comply. That has been the biggest change in our reality and what we can an can't do, and effected our ability to change things as quick as possible from view of winning trophies."

Follow all of Tuesday's Carabao Cup news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Newcastle and Leicester City.

Here are some of your comments:

Newcastle fans:

Michael: Much better and Dan Burn was awesome! Sandro Tonali, Jacob Murphy, Lewis Hall and Bruno Guimaraes all got involved. Alexander Isak could have had a hat-trick but it is good to see him getting back to his best! Much-needed win for an under-pressure Eddie Howe.

Richard: I'm not sure if I expected us to win because the players would be out to support the manager after a poor show at Brentford or because losing was just unthinkable! Failing to win would have just been awful and thankfully we got the good NUFC and not the 'other' one. When we play well, we can give anyone a game. Consistency is the key. And well done Murph for proving the doubters wrong.

Johnny: A fantastic win and much better performance than others of late. Leicester were poor and there will be much harder games to come, but across the midfield our team seemed a lot more balanced than they have looked recently. If we'd been more clinical it could have been as comprehensive as six or seven nil. Hall and Tonali were my standouts.

Adam: Finally a result and a performance. Hopefully they can replicate this regularly and really kick on this season. There's so much disruption in the league like City floundering. A good run over the holiday period could lift us really high and set us up for a exciting finale.

Leicester fans:

Karl: Awful. Made a bang-average side look like Brazil 1970. Clutching at straws because we were abysmal - but Guimaraes shouldn't have been on the pitch. The referee was as bad as we were.

Ian: I felt at half-time that we were still in the game and could have challenged for at least a point in the second half. Then I switched back as the game had restarted, saw Danny Ward in goal, and knew we were in for a humiliation. I never want to see him in a Leicester shirt again. Ever. The amount of sheer bad luck this club has endured over the past four years or so is astonishing.

Carl: We are where we are. When you lose players like Riyad Mahrez, N'Golo Kante, Ben Chilwell, Danny Drinkwater, Harvey Barnes, Harry Maguire, Wesley Fofana, James Maddison, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Kasper Schmeichel and then face long-term injuries to Abdul Fatawu and Ricardo Pereira, and only ever replace with £5-15 million players there is no surprise that we are struggling near the bottom of the table. It's going to be a long season!

Richard: The truth was hammered home here - no real team co-ordination developed at all. Also it is surely time to find another goalkeeper in place of Ward. Nobody wanted him in the summer but he cannot be allowed between the sticks in the Premier League. Get someone new or look to develop from the academy and let Ward's contact just run out.

Newcastle United are targeting a move for Barcelona defender Andreas Christensen, 28. (Fichajes - in Spanish), external

Newcastle plan to sell England left-back Kieran Trippier, 34, and Paraguay attacking midfielder Miguel Almiron, 30, to help with their position when it comes to profit and sustainability rules. (Football Insider), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

Highlights and analysis from Saturday's five Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up now on BBC iPlayer.

Listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Liverpool 2-2 Fulham

• Nottingham Forest 2-1 Aston Villa

Image source, Getty Images

Newcastle United's Bruno Guimaraes to BBC Match of the Day after today's win: "I think we stepped up in this game. It was a massive win. The team played well, especially in the second half.

"I am very happy to score again. I have been trying for a long, long time, but I wasn't lucky. But very happy for today and we need to keep going. We have a massive game on Wednesday.

"Our message in the changing room during half-time was to try to score the second goal as quick as possible for the confidence, I think we deserved to win the game and played much better than against Brentford.

"We need to step up in all games and not just against the big six. Today was a big proof that this team can do big things together."