Newcastle 3 West Brom 2 – Wednesday 26 August 2026 7.45pm
Instant fan/writer reaction from some of our regular contributors on The Mag.
Nat Seaton:
‘A win in the cup, I’ll take that!
Plenty of positives to take out of the game that didn’t hit the heights of Sunday for obvious reasons.
Into the hat we go and another game under our belts.
Can’t wait for Saturday…’
GToon:
‘Decent game in the end. A win is a win.
Steur looked excellent. The team looks more driven than last season. Nico and a number 10 would be good. Poor old Lewis Hall.
Nice to see the manager getting agitated. We could do with that.
I’m not sure how Woltemade is going to fit in though.’
Billy Miller:
‘A proper ding dong cup tie to get Jaissle’s Carabao career underway.
He took it seriously and we got the deserved result.
Have to feel for Hall conceding another penalty but Barnes tore them apart with a well taken brace.
It is worrying how open we are at times with the two man midfield but it’s still extremely early days with the new formation.
Will be interesting to see if Tino can get in at right back. Dedic has looked superb in his first pair of starts.’
Matt Busby said…:
‘We’re in the hat, that’s what matters most.
Sean Steur MOTM until he went off. Miley looked as accomplished in replacing the lad.
WBA made a game of it so fair play to them.’
David Punton:
‘Progress in the League Cup is welcome but there were defensive frailties and terrible refereeing on display.
We’ve made heavy weather of that, so thank goodness for Harvey Barnes.
Six changes from Sunday and alas Woltemade didn’t quite pass the audition.
That’s also another game where Lewis Hall has ricked.
It was great to see Toure get himself a goal, plenty to come from him.
It’s never as easy as you think against Championship sides – and so it proved.
It’s fair to say we will have to defend a lot better down at Spurs.’
Tony Mallabar:
‘After Sunday’s draw vs Luckypool, I would have taken any kind of a win, just to get us off to a belated winning start.
Glad we are into the next round and hopefully a more focused display on Saturday teatime.’
Simon Ritter:
‘The best news of the night? Newcastle United are extremely unlikely to suffer the appalling officiating of Robert (Bobby) Madley again for some considerable time. He hadn’t taken charge of a Mags match for more than eight years, in pre-VAR days, and anybody who doubts the value of Stockley Park should be made to watch a replay of this League Cup second-round tie.
The referee, who now inflicts his incompetence almost exclusively on teams in the lower leagues, was as bad as Chris Kavanagh at Villa Park last season, which takes some doing. It’s no coincidence both matches were VAR-free zones.
As for the action, Jaouen looked a bit dodgy and should have saved the first West Brom goal. Dedic, with two assists and some forceful defending, looks likely to give Livramento plenty of competition when the England international regains full fitness. Thiaw and Botman are slowly rebuilding their partnership in central defence. Hall is not yet back to his best, seen in the first half of last season, and was harshly punished when the ball bounced off his thigh onto his arm. VAR would, if obeying protocols, have sent Madley to the pitchside screen, probably for him to double down on his mistake.
Woltemade had another difficult game, though he was better in the second half once Barnes and Wissa made their entrances. Steur looked class, Toure less impressive than in pre-season, while Ramsey, Willock and Murphy were a bit hit-and-miss. Barnes again showed he is an exceptional finisher. If only he could start games with the same precision he showed after replacing Toure at half-time.’
Mark Jankowski:
‘It was very scrappy in places but Newcastle are through to the next round of the cup.
West Brom were a threat from set-pieces but rarely troubled our defence otherwise.
Dedic was probably my man of the match. He looked one of the most threatening players throughout and bagged two assists.
Steur is an immensely talented young man but he’s still got a lot of work to do developing his game out of possession. I expect Nico to slot into the midfield ahead of him on Saturday.’
Newcastle 3 West Brom 2 – Wednesday 26 August 2026 7.45pm
Match Stats
Goals:
Newcastle United:
Toure 38, Barnes 48. 81
West Brom:
Price 18, 77 pen
Possession was Newcastle 57% West Brom 43%
Total shots were Newcastle 16 West Brom 12
Shots on target were Newcastle 7 West Brom 3
Corners were Newcastle 6 West Brom 2
Touches in the opposition box Newcastle 36 West Brom 16
Newcastle United team v West Brom:
Jaouen, Dedic, Thiaw, Botman, Hall, Ramsey, Steur (Lewis Miley 65), Murphy (Elanga 64), Willock (Wissa 64), Toure (Barnes 46), Woltemade
Unused subs:
Hornicek, Schar, Bamba, Shahar, Neave