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Newcastle United: Pros and cons of losing to Nottingham Forest

By Durim Halimi

NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND - AUGUST 29: Matty Cash of Nottingham Forest scores his team's second goal during the Carabao Cup Second Round match between Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United at City Ground on August 29, 2018 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND - AUGUST 29: Matty Cash of Nottingham Forest scores his team's second goal during the Carabao Cup Second Round match between Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United at City Ground on August 29, 2018 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /
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Newcastle United experienced some deja vu yesterday as Nottingham Forest eliminated the Magpies from the Carabao Cup.

Newcastle United are officially eliminated from the Carabao Cup after losing 3-1 to Nottingham Forest on the road. Those who turned their televisions off before stoppage time missed out on a thrilling contest which saw three of the four goals occur after the 90th minute.

Rafa Benitez did not deploy his strongest side, but the players he selected should have done more to earn a positive result in this match. In the end, Newcastle tasted defeat at the hands of a mid-table Championship side. With that being said, here are some pros and cons to this loss.

Pros

Focus on Premier League

While it would be nice to see another trophy make its way to Tyneside, the Carabao Cup is essentially meaningless to Newcastle. Had the Magpies advanced in this tournament, it would have taken away much-needed attention from the Premier League.

Benitez has said time and time again that Newcastle’s primary aim will be to avoid relegation this season. Newcastle have had a poor start to the season and Benitez will appreciate the extra time he has to prepare his men for crucial league matches now that this cup run is over.

Experiment

The primary objective yesterday was to claim a victory over an inferior opponent to rebuild lost confidence ahead of the clash with Manchester City. Unfortunately, the Magpies failed to win. However, Benitez was able to achieve his secondary objective – experiment with the roster.

Benitez was able to try Yoshinori Muto as a starter, played youngsters Sean Longstaff and Jamie Sterry and played Ciaran Clark out of position on the wing. Newcastle cannot afford to experiment with their team sheet during league play, but they did well in playing new faces yesterday.

Cons

Poor Form Continues

Instead of gaining confidence in this match, Newcastle perpetuated their poor run of form. The Magpies did a better job of moving the ball around with 503 passes and maintained most of the possession. However, they only had one shot on target from 10 attempts.

Nottingham Forest played extremely well against Newcastle as they dominated offensively.  The Championship club exposed Newcastle’s shaky defense just a few days before playing the defending champions.

Overall, it was an embarrassing defeat for Newcastle. Playing on the road is always a challenge for most clubs, but the Magpies should have handled business against an inferior opponent that plays their football in the second tier.