Joelinton and William Osula both scored twice as Newcastle began their Carabao Cup title defence with a 4-1 third-round victory over Bradford at St James’ Park.
Joelinton opened the scoring with a 17th-minute rebound strike, before he added their third goal from Bruno Guimaraes’ 75th-minute pass.
Osula netted the Magpies’ second goal after he successfully latched onto Guimaraes’ through-ball pass, before his second goal came from a close-range tap-in of Harvey Barnes’ low 87th-minute cross.
Andy Cook netted a 79th-minute consolatory strike against his boyhood club as Bradford’s cup run came to an end.
Having enjoyed bright starts in their wins over Championship’s Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City in the first two rounds, it wasn’t a shock that Bradford enjoyed another quick start as Brad Halliday forced a first-minute save from Aaron Ramsdale.
Newcastle calmly soaked up Bradford’s early intensity until they struck in the 17th minute as Lewis Miley teed up Bruno Guimaraes, but the Brazilian midfielder found Anthony Gordon whose shot was deflected for Joelinton to tuck away on the rebound to break the deadlock.
If Bradford began dreaming of a comeback cupset then those dreams were rapidly snuffed out just two minutes later, as Guimaraes played through Osula to fire in the Magpies’ second goal.
Osula almost added to his goal tally in the 25th minute after he met Anthony Elanga’s short pass to the left side of the box, yet his shot was blocked by Sam Walker.
Gordon subsequently saw shots denied either side of half time whilst Guimaraes and Anthony Elanga too wasted chances to wrap the game up within the opening hour, whilst Stephen Humphrys’ header from Bobby Pointon’s 53rd-minute cross was saved by Ramsdale.
Newcastle eventually sealed victory in the 75th minute after Guimaraes teed up Joelinton to slot in their third goal, which also was the Brazilian’s second in the match.
Bradford however pounced on a sloppy 79th-minute clearance by Lewis Miley which saw the ball intercepted with a knockdown header down for Tommy Leigh, who laid off for Cook to score against his boyhood club.
Substitute, Harvey Barnes nearly restored Newcastle’s three-goal lead in the 84th minute but poked Tino Livramento’s cross just wide of the bottom right corner.
Barnes however proved crucial to Newcastle’s fourth goal as he picked up a pass into the left side of goal and played a low cross through the box, which Osula tucked in from close range to claim his brace and settle the match and ensure that the Magpies’ title defence rolled on into the fourth round.
What’s Next?
Newcastle face another massive home clash as they host Arsenal on Sunday 28 September at 4:30pm BST in the Premier League.
Bradford will too be at home in their next outing as the Bantams welcome Blackpool to Valley Parade on Saturday 27 September in League One at 3pm.
Teams
Newcastle: Aaron Ramsdale, Emil Krafth (Trippier 61′), Malick Thiaw, Sven Botman, Lewis Hall (Livramento 61′), Bruno Guimaraes, Lewis Miley, Anthony Elanga (Woltemade 69′), Joelinton, Anthony Gordon (Barnes 69′), William Osula
Substitutes: Harvey Barnes, Jamaal Lascelles, Tino Livramento, Alex Murphy, Nick Pope, Sandro Tonali, Kieran Trippier, Joe Willock, Nicke Woltemade
Bradford: Sam Walker, Matthew Pennington, Neill Byrne, Ibou Touray, Brad Halliday (Neufville 62′), Tommy Leigh, Max Power, Ciaran Kelly (T. Wright 61′), Nick Powell (Sarcevic 46′), Bobby Pointon, Stephen Humphrys (Cook 62′)
Substitutes: Andy Cook, Joe Hilton, George Lapslie, Tom McIntyre, Jenson Metcalfe, Josh Neufville, Antoni Sarcevic, Joe Wright, Tyreik Wright
Referee – Thomas Kirk
Leave a Reply