Alexander Isak scored the opening goal to help Newcastle beat Arsenal 2-0 in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final after VAR decided not to punish him for a push on Martin Odegaard
Alexander Isak brushed away the suggestion of a foul in the build-up to his goal after Newcastle claimed a huge win over Arsenal.
The Magpies won the away leg 2-0 on Tuesday night to take a huge advantage into the return leg in February. Isak opened the scoring with a clinical finish after the ball broke to him inside the penalty area following a long free-kick from Martin Dubravka.
Anthony Gordon tucked in a rebound after another shot from Isak to double their lead and Arsenal couldn’t respond. Gabriel Martinelli struck the post when through one-on-one with Dubravka and Kai Havertz sent a free header wide from a few yards out to set up a tough challenge at St James’ Park on February 5.
Newcastle defended brilliantly to make it seven wins in a row across all competitions with five clean sheets, but there were question marks over Isak’s goal. The Swedish striker pushed Martin Odegaard in the back before the ball dropped to him, creating space for an unchallenged shot beyond David Raya.
The incident was missed by VAR, but was picked up by ITV, who put the accusation to Newcastle’s in-form striker. “I wouldn’t say I got away with it,” Isak replied. “I think that’s a part of the game, playing a bit on the edge. It’s nothing.”
Speaking to Sky Sports, Mikel Arteta did not complain about the push. “I have seen the goal and it is something they do,” he said. “They create the chaos, and it gets to the wrong player and Isak puts it away.”
Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber told ITV: “I think everyone knows he’s a tough player to defend against but it doesn’t take away the fact that we can defend better than we did today.”
HAVE YOUR SAY! Did Alexander Isak get away with one? Comment below.
Former Arsenal winger Theo Walcott felt that Odegaard’s reaction said a lot. “There will be a lot of people at home thinking it’s a foul but you can always tell by players’ reactions that it’s not – Odegaard hasn’t reacted in that way,” he explained on Sky Sports. “What I think is really smart of Isak, as well, is that he’s always got his eyes on Odegaard and his eyes light up. That’s when he’s at his best.”
Meanwhile, Jamie Redknapp pointed the finger of blame at the Arsenal coaching staff for leaving Odegaard to mark Isak – a player who came into the match with six goals in his previous four games. “What I will say is the set-piece coach gets a lot of credit,” he said. “He obviously doesn’t do the defensive ones because how can you have Odegaard marking him… he’s the best centre-forward in the country right now! You’ve got to detail somebody to say ‘where is he? Let’s mark him’.
“Odegaard has no interest in marking him and he gets into a really good position. Isak is the wrong side of Odegaard, it’s just a mismatch! Somebody has to take that responsibility. I know Newcastle are a big side, with [Sven] Botman, [Dan] Burn and Joelinton, but Arsenal are a big side too. You cannot have the best forward in the country having that much space – it’s nonsensical to me.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read ourPrivacy Notice.
Learn more
