Howe hopes high-pressing Newcastle inspired by Chelsea win

Eddie Howe hopes Newcastle United “feel a bit better about themselves” after booking their place in the EFL Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 victory over Chelsea.

The Magpies claimed only their second victory in seven matches across all competitions, with Alexander Isak and an Axel Disasi own goal sending them through to the last eight.

Howe’s side were beaten 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League on Sunday, and the head coach was pleased with his players’ response against the same opposition three days on.

“[A] really good performance tonight, especially in the first half,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“We got our pressing attitude bang on and got a lot of regains high up the pitch, which is where the first goal came from. [I am] delighted with the contribution from the whole squad.

“You always learn from every game and try to put things into practice in the next match. I just felt there was a better feel in our out of possession delivery tonight. We were much better on the details and turning the regains into chances going forwards.

“[In the] second half, it wasn’t an easy game to manage. They were bringing on some good players from the bench to add to the quality they already had on the pitch, but I thought we defended really well.

“This place is an amazing venue to play in and that was shown again tonight. Sold out, great atmosphere, good performance and I hope everyone feels a bit better about themselves now.”

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— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) October 30, 2024

Meanwhile, Chelsea suffered only their second defeat in 11 games across all competitions, but Enzo Maresca was impressed by what he saw from the visitors, who had an xG of 1.97 over the 90 minutes at St James’ Park.

“I think it worked if we analysed the performance. If we analysed the result, it didn’t work,” he told reporters during his post-match press conference.

“For 20 minutes until their goal, we were in control of the game. In the last 10 minutes of the first half, we had two clear-cut chances but didn’t score. In the second half, we were in control of the game.

“We lost the goals because of 10 minutes. For the rest, we were quite good. We did very well tonight, but there are many things we can do better.”

Brentford await Newcastle in the next round after the Magpies made the quarter-finals for a fourth time in the last five seasons.