Newcastle are one game away from lifting their first trophy in almost 56 years. There has been no silverware to celebrate on Tyneside since Newcastle’s triumph in the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup (later known as the UEFA Cup/Europa League), but that barren run will end if Eddie Howe can mastermind Liverpool’s downfall in the 2025 Carabao Cup final.
Howe is also vying to become the first English manager to win a major trophy since Harry Redknapp led unfancied Portsmouth to FA Cup glory in 2008. Newcastle have re-emerged as a formidable Premier League side on Howe’s watch, and victory at Wembley would cap his largely impressive four-year spell at the club.
But it’s not the be-all and end-all for Newcastle. Liverpool are heavy favourites given their status as Premier League champions-elect, so there is not a huge amount of pressure on Howe’s team. Getting back into the Champions League is the Magpies’ main priority, and they’re in a strong position with 10 games left in the league.
The bottom line is: Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), who completed a £305 million ($395m) takeover at Newcastle in October 2021, have far bigger aspirations than winning the Carabao Cup. Howe probably won’t get away with another season of only fighting for the top four and the least prestigious of all three domestic trophies on offer to Premier League clubs.
A win on Sunday will go some way to getting rid of Newcastle’s ‘nearly-men’ tag, but it won’t guarantee Howe’s long-term future by any means. This club is aiming for the very top, and Howe still has a lot of convincing to do if he is to remain at the wheel for the next stage of the project.