We saw a surprise in the EFL Cup semi-final match and it was very interesting and exciting. Arsenal lost the match and they are very likely to be eliminated from the semi-finals. Newcastle played strongly and with excitement which resulted in them achieving a good result to qualify for the final. Newcastle are two goals ahead in the first leg of the semi-final, of course they will be even stronger against Arsenal in the second leg to qualify for the final. I think Arsenal may not be able to score as many goals in the second leg so their chances of going to the final are also very low.
Newcastle is not a weak team. We have seen that Newcastle has won consistently in the last few matches of the Premier League. Newcastle has continued to win in the last 6 matches of the Premier League. So Newcastle had the ability to defeat Arsenal. And Newcastle won the match 2-0.
However, Arsenal tried their best to win in this match. Arsenal basically dominated the match. But Newcastle's players were tactical. So despite not attacking much, Newcastle won the match 2-0. Arsenal's players had 70% ball possession and made 23 shots. On the other hand, Newcastle's players made only 7 shots, but Newcastle managed to score two goals. Newcastle's defense played very well in this match. At the same time, their match strategy was also good.
Arsenal performance in the defeat to Newcastle was good but they did not create any chances to score, although they had 23 shots on goal but only 3 on goal. I watched the game and it was a very exciting game but the experienced Arsenal team could not score any goals. Coach Mikel Arteta complained that the ball floated too much in the air. Instead, he should focus on improving the ability of his players. Newcastle are a great team and they played well and showed their tactical and organized play in scoring goals.
Arsenal players kept the ball in their possession for most of the time but missed most of the scoring chances. If Gabriel Kai Havertz had not missed the goal chances, the result of the game could have been different. However I am hopeful that from this match they will be better prepared for the next match.