Eddie Howe will have his sights set on more success for Newcastle United
Eddie Howe will have his sights set on more success for Newcastle United
It feels like a long time since Newcastle United got their season under way with that 1-0 win over Southampton back in August. So much has happened since and yet there is still everything to play for in the final ten games.
This side will go down in history as the first to win a major trophy for 56 years - and first domestic silverware for 70 years - but when the dust settles at the end of May, whhat will success look like for Eddie Howe and Co. Is the Carabao Cup victory, glorious as it was, enough, or should they be striving for more.
There's little doubt Howe will be driving his players on to achieve a top-five finish and qualification for next season's Champions League. After all, those in charge of the finances will be quick to remind all just what a seat at Europe's top table means on that front. Here;s our team of NUFC writes assess what the goals should be for the final two months of what has already been a season to remember.
Ciaran Kelly
It is all about momentum, for me. If Newcastle build on the cup triumph, a Champions League place is there for the taking because the sides around them continue to struggle for consistency.
I think Newcastle have been astute in holding the trophy parade this weekend rather than at the end of the season. It will lift the city even further ahead of the run-in - a fortnight on from the win against Liverpool - and ensures the chapter is closed before the Magpies even contest their next league game.
There is no time for hangovers, after all, but Newcastle have always finished campaigns strongly under Eddie Howe and there is a real opportunity to go on a run now with five of the black-and-whites' next six matches being against sides currently in the bottom half.
Regardless of what happens, this has been a season that will never be forgotten but qualifying for the Champions League would make it one of the very best in living memory and why shouldn't Newcastle aim for that? A fifth-placed finish may yet be enough.
Lee Ryder
The rest of the season will now be about a top five finish and with 10 games left Newcastle have confidence and momentum.
They can get that Champions League place and while I am torn over which European competition would suit them most, the money of the Champions League is the main aim.
A Europa Conference League place would mean a flat finish. Although, I think if we are honest that would represent another chance of a trophy lift next season. The aim internally is to get top five.
Newcastle's Carabao Cup trophy parade
Timings in full
Weather forecast
Parade route
Town Moor tickets
Aaron Stokes
Eddie Howe seemed surprised when told, moments after the Carabao Cup final, that his side had booked their place in the Europa Conference League next term. Essentially, that fact doesn't matter - because failing to qualify for the Champions League from this position would put a slight dampener on this historic campaign.
United are one point away from a top five spot which will be enough to secure a place in Europe's premier competition. The momentum of the Wembley win, provided it doesn't cause a hangover, should be enough for Howe's side to head upwards rather than fall away.
Looking at the Magpies' fixtures, with 10 league games remaining, Newcastle only face two sides currently sat above them in the table - Arsenal and Chelsea, both at home. The perfect run in to build on last weekend's heroics.
Stuart Jamieson
I can't help feeling that this isn't the greatest of Premier Leagues - so if Newcastle United miss out on a top five position it wll be hugely disappointing. Liverpool are going to cruise to the title without breaking sweat and with a overhaul already planned, Arsenal are comfortably second without having a striker, this is the worst Man City side for years, Chelsea have been inconsistent at best . . .
Take nothing away from Forest, but Newcastle have beaten them three times now this season (once on penalties), and the rest of the bunch - including Newcastle - are packed in behind. Its there for the taking. Newcastle, Bournemouth, Villa, Brighton can all be brilliant on their day, but also susceptible to some abject performances and results.
United must take the momentum from their Carabao Cup success - and crucially that 1-0 win at West Ham - and resdiscover the form that got them here over December and January. There should be no excuses.
Ross Gregory
The more you get, the more you want. It sounds greedy to say that a Carabao Cup triumph alone wouldn't represent a successful season, especially since it's 70 years since Newcastle won a domestic piece of silverware. If you'd offered fans and the club a trophy at the start of the campaign they'd have bitten your hand off.
But now, with the run-in looming and the chance to qualify in the Champions League, we want more. We want that top five finish. That would then really, really represent a fantastic season.
Key to it will be getting and keeping players fit. The squad remains threadbare and we've seen the inconsistency as a result. The same 11 or 12 players taking to the pitch week in and week out is unsustainable, but with Lewis Hall and Sven Botman out of action for a while, and fatigue a concern, there's not many options for Eddie Howe.
If he can keep Alexander Isak and his midfield three fit and in form, and crucially get Anthony Gordon back and firing after his misdemeanour and injury, it could yet turn into the greatest season in the club's modern history.