Paullow

So what is the crack with that red in terms of suspension?

SHIT, SHIT, SHIT

Seems ages ago since Sean's 2nd goal.

It would still have been the same score on agg, with them scoring the last goal and in the ascendancy.

Definitely feel more nervous than I should leading 3-1. I guess if it was 0-0 over there and we went 3-0 up at home, then it might have felt a bit different for some reason.

Southampton to qualify has just come in from 16/1 to 9/1 at SkyBet in the past hour or so. Perhaps more money was going on at that price, or they will claim it was a palpable error or something. https://www.oddschecker.com/football/english/efl-cup/newcastle-v-southampton/winner You can still get 14/1 at 365, but I did think 16/1 looked huge, and should have been nearer 9 or 10/1.

I know Howe was saying nobody in for the sake of it, but it will be a bit disappointing if we fail to bring in midfield cover. Slightly different circumstances as they will probably have a bit more pull, probably more resources in place, and more chance of first team football, but Man Utd knew they had a midfield problem once Eriksen got injured and have acted upon that, so if they could bring someone in quickly, you'd have hoped we might be able to. Not saying we could / should have looked at that Bayern player, but a similarish 6 month loan deal with options, not obligations, or perhaps neither, would have been perfect.

I'd imagine there would be a few others in the same boat. It's not quite as uncommon or weird as it sounds

7pm again, so a full hour.

I'm a sap, and have just stuck £12.50 on Southampton to 'win the tie' at SkyBet, returning exactly £200 profit if it comes in. 100%, not even 99.9% hope to lose that money, but I guess an extra £200 in my pocket would be a tiny degree of comfort should the worst happen. 16/1 does look massive generally if looking at it from an objective perspective, it's only 1-0.

FA Cup draw has just been made, most of the better sides have been kept apart, but it could be Man Utd vs West Ham if the latter come through their ITV4 match with Derby tonight. Sunderland have Leeds at home if they can get past Fulham in the replay. One of Ipswich / Burnley / Sheff Wed / Fleetwood will make the QF.

Went back a week or so on his timeline and would be amazed if he was actually a genuine Newcastle fan. Likely one from down the road on a windup.

I quite like him. He's been here exactly 7 years now, so a significant chunk of his career. Stayed with us in the Championship unlike Townsend (although may not have had a similar release clause), was a big part of that season and returning back to the PL immediately. Played over 200 games for us, and chipped in with some very important goals, most notably that winning goal against Leeds last January. I'll remember him well, and it is a little bit of a shame with all his 'we're going to be massive' 'want to be part of this' talk, but the injury clearly hasn't helped the situation from his perspective and we've probably moved on too quickly, and beyond him, and not worth triggering the clause if someone is happy to take him off our hands, and free us of those hefty wages. We can, and almost certainly will be upgraded, as will be the case for many players going forward, so the right time to go, but I'll certainly wish him well, and remember him in a good light.

Sheffield United!

VAR - onside. Was hoping for a replay.

Grim.

Preference here for me would be: Draw Liverpool win Brighton win

He'll probably get the winner, and still early days, but has Gakpo actually done anything of note since his move?

I wonder what they are waiting for? I remember Trippier being announced around 8am (because I wasn't up ), so doesn't seem like there is a 'perfect' / optimal time of day to announce things.

Two pretty strong teams in the Brighton vs Liverpool match, which is good to see generally. The keeper situation is strange - Liverpool have gone for Alisson, whereas Brighton have opted for Steele. I can half understand teams giving their back up a go in the cups, especially when not in the latter stages, but it's not great when there is such a gulf between the #1 and #2, and you feel it may cost them here. Hoping for a draw.

I thought he was 22 as well for some reason, but he just turned 21 a couple of months ago.

Not often you get a match not featuring Rangers or Celtic on Sky. It cashes directly with Brighton vs Liverpool, so will prioritise that, but will definitely keep tabs on it if he gets on, or the replayed version as mentioned above.

Was hoping Reading could have hung out a little bit longer, tire them out a bit more physically and mentally. Next 30 mins will probably be a stroll in the park and they can make ample changes. Guess it's better than the game being totally over after 20 odd minutes, which it was kind of looking like.

Think I'd prefer Man Utd just to win. They've obviously put out a very strong team here, pretty much full strength, but there's no free space to squeeze an an extra match before the EFL final, and a PL match would need to be rearranged, so I'd probably rather they just kept their current schedule, and have those two matches with Leeds - obviously it would ultimately mean an extra match (after the EFL final) which might have implications for their league form, but I think I'd prefer them to have lots of PL matches before the final and not another match against 2nd tier opposition, where they could possibly rotate. Surprised they've gone so strong here mind, thought there'd be a few changes, and expect a routine 3-0 win.

Hopefully a draw here. I'd like Spurs to advance for extra matches, and with that European spot in mind, but an extra match somewhere in their schedule would be nice.