The Swedish striker had a grand time against the shaky Arsenal defence as the Magpies sealed their place in the final
Arsenal were their own worst enemies as Newcastle booked a place in the Carabao Cup final with a 2-0 win over Mikel Arteta's men in the second leg of their semi-final tie. Already two goals down from the first leg, the Gunners had a mountain to climb heading into the clash, but they simply collapsed at St. James' Park and went crashing out with a 4-0 aggregate defeat.
With Magpies striker Alexander Isak tearing up their defence at one end, the north London side were totally inept up front as Kai Havertz's anonymous display showed exactly why Arteta is in dire need of a top-quality striker in his ranks.
After seeing an early Isak goal disallowed to quell a blistering start from Newcastle, Arsenal had a huge chance to go ahead when Martin Odegaard ended up in a great position but but his lashed effort hit the post.
Seconds later, Newcastle had the ball in the net again and this one counted – Isak winning the battle against William Saliba and then smacking the upright, with Jacob Murphy there to tuck the ball into the open goal.
Arsenal stepped up their game following the goal but were not able to fully take control, and seemed more likely to gift Newcastle another goal. And they did just that when, minutes after wasting a golden chance presented to him by Saliba, Anthony Gordon found himself perfectly placed to receive the ball after Declan Rice was caught out by a silly David Raya pass and the winger quickly rolled it into the net.
Newcastle were able to sit back and enjoy as Arsenal staggered and stumbled up the field, completely unable to cause any problems until the final whistle confirmed the home team's progress to the final.
GOAL rates Arsenal's players from St James' Park…
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David Raya (3/10):
Another silly, crucial mistake as his pass put Rice under pressure and gave away the second goal.
Jurrien Timber (6/10):
Saw a lot of the ball and more reliable than his fellow defenders.
William Saliba (4/10):
Lost the battle for the initial ball and then was left in Isak's wake before the first goal and then gave a great opportunity to Gordon in the second half.
Gabriel (5/10):
Reacted too slowly to the rebound, allowing Murphy to score and looked vulnerable throughout.
Myles Lewis-Skelly (6/10):
Dug in with some tackles and tried to offer support when Arsenal went forward.
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Martin Odegaard (4/10):
Had a huge chance just before the goal and had a frustrating game overall. Went off at the hour mark.
Thomas Partey (6/10):
Made some good passes but didn't offer enough protection.
Declan Rice (5/10):
Tried to get something going on the ball and applied some pressure but couldn't deal with Raya's woeful pass, leading to the second goal.
AFPAttack
Gabriel Martinelli (5/10):
Couldn't connect with team-mates and struggled to make anything work before going off after 37 minutes with an injury.
Kai Havertz (4/10):
Couldn't register a single shot and kept on giving the ball away. Another bad day at the office.
Leandro Trossard (4/10):
Quiet in the first half beyond some questionable decisions and had no real impact. Went off after 60 minutes.
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Ethan Nwaneri (6/10):
Replaced Martinelli in the first half and was lively, but had a brutal time trying to get it beyond the defence.
Raheem Sterling (6/10):
The tie was over by the time he came on and he could do nothing to lift them.
Mikel Merino (6/10):
Played 30 minutes and tried to get forward in support but nothing worked out.
Riccardo Calafiori (N/A):
On after 77 minutes and couldn't add much.
Jorginho (N/A):
Didn't have much time to impact the game.
Mikel Arteta (4/10):
His team were second best all over the park. Their usual reliable performers were weak and his team's glaring need for a new forward was made clear yet again.
