Newcastle reach FA Cup fifth round with thrilling win over Birmingham City.
Newcastle United had to come from behind to defeat Birmingham City 3-2 in the FA Cup, just three days after securing their place in the EFL Cup final.
Joe Willock scored two goals – including one controversial strike – as Newcastle booked their spot in the fifth round with a thrilling victory over League One leaders Birmingham City.
It was a classic cup tie at St Andrew’s, and though Newcastle came out on top, they certainly had to work for it.
A Tough Test for Newcastle
Eddie Howe made nine changes to the side that beat Arsenal 2-0 in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg on Wednesday, with only Dan Burn and Bruno Guimarães keeping their places.
The game had everything—quality, controversy, and injuries. And with so many changes to the squad, Newcastle showed signs of instability at times.
League One leaders Birmingham pushed their Premier League visitors all the way, taking a shock lead inside the opening 40 seconds when Keshi Anderson peeled away at a corner and headed the ball across goal for Ethan Laird to fire in.
Nick Pope made a fine save to thwart Jay Stansfield, then Newcastle levelled in bizarre circumstances in the 21st minute.
Willock turned William Osula’s cross goalwards, only for Bailey Peacock-Farrell to claw it away from the goal line. Willock then smashed the rebound over, only for the linesman to signal his first effort had crossed the line.
With goal-line technology not in use until the fifth round of the competition, the goal stood despite replays being unclear.
Five minutes later, Newcastle were ahead via another scrappy goal, Wilson prodding in after Osula blocked his own close-range effort with his standing leg.
But Birmingham restored parity five minutes before half-time, Tomoki Iwata rifling a wonderful strike into the top-right corner from the edge of the box.
There was less goalmouth action in a second half that occasionally threatened to boil over, until Willock struck the decisive goal eight minutes from time.
Sean Longstaff’s cutback was blocked, but it deflected kindly into the path of Willock on the right side of the box, and he made no mistake with his finish.
Newcastle Continue Cup Success
Just days after their EFL Cup semi-final triumph, Eddie Howe’s side overcame a major scare to keep their FA Cup hopes alive.
This marks the first time Newcastle have reached the FA Cup fifth round in back-to-back seasons since 2004-05 and 2005-06.
Meanwhile, Birmingham bow out after seeing their 18-match unbeaten streak across all competitions end, while they have now failed to win any of their last 11 FA Cup games against Premier League opposition.
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