Newcastle Beat Blackburn Via Penalties To Advance To FA Cup Q ...

February 28, (THEWILL) – Newcastle United advanced to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup on Tuesday night, following a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Blackburn Rovers. The English Premier League side withstood intense pressure from their Championship opponents before prevailing 4-3 on penalties after 120 goalless minutes at Ewood Park.

Still searching for their maiden win under new manager, John Eustace, Blackburn entered the contest hoping home advantage would enable them to spring an upset. The hosts enjoyed the better of the early chances with Sammie Szmodics forcing an excellent save, while Newcastle’s Sean Longstaff saw his effort blocked. However, clear openings remained scarce during a tight first half.

After the break, Blackburn continued strongly as John Buckley drew another stop from Magpies ‘keeper Martin Dubravka. The visitors gradually wrested back control and deservedly went ahead through substitute Miguel Almirón’s assist for Anthony Gordon on 71 minutes. Yet, Rovers showed resilience to level soon after when Szmodics converted a rebound.

Both sides had late chances to win in normal time, but Dominic Hyam and Szmodics for Blackburn and Gordon plus Longstaff for Newcastle were thwarted. Extra time brought more near misses as Dubravka excelled with a double save prior to more stalemate. In the shootout, the Slovakian denied Szmodics and Hyam decisively to send Newcastle through.

The result means the Magpies extended their outstanding fifth round record to nine straight victories, while handing Eustace’s Blackburn a fourth successive loss in all competitions.

Jude Obafemi, THEWILLhttps://thewillnews.com

Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.