El Newcastle puso fin a 70 años sin trofeos con una sorprendente victoria en la Carabao Cup, y los fans celebran con una camiseta barata de fútbol.

Kevin Keegan, Bobby Robson, Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoigne. Nombres legendarios en la historia del Newcastle, pero ninguno logró lo que Eddie Howe y su equipo: ganar un trofeo. Tras 70 años de espera, los Magpies sorprendieron al líder de la Premier League, Liverpool, venciendo 2-1 en la final de la Carabao Cup.

La alegría y el alivio de la Toon Army fueron evidentes en Londres, Newcastle y hasta Australia, celebrando el fin de una larga sequía de trofeos. Entre ellos estaba Michael Bridges, exjugador del Newcastle, quien estuvo en Wembley para ver a su equipo levantar el título con una camiseta barata de fútbol como recuerdo.

En The Optus Sport Football Podcast, Bridges compartió lo que esto significó personalmente, recordando a familiares que nunca vieron al club ganar un título importante. "My dad would have been looking down - he passed away having never seen Newcastle winning any silverware. I was with my cousin who lost his father two years ago - he'd never seen it. My wife has lost her dad. We were all celebrating as a family thinking it's an incredible, historic moment that we witnessed," dijo. "I just know that my father would be looking down with a smile on his face that Newcastle have finally won something. Because to have his lifetime and not witness it that is how monumental this has been. It's going to have a monumental impact now. I've played at that football club. The names that roll off your tongue that haven't won a trophy at this football club: Alan Shearer, Kevin Keegan. It's incredible what Eddie Howe and his players have achieved. It's huge. It's historic."

Howe es el primer entrenador del Newcastle en ganar un título doméstico desde Dough Livingstone, y el primer inglés en lograrlo desde Harry Redknapp con el Portsmouth en 2008. Bridges sugirió que, por el impacto y la transformación del club bajo su mando, Howe merece ser inmortalizado: "If Eddie Howe doesn't get a statue now, it's a disgrace!"

El club ahora buscará usar este éxito como trampolín para convertirse en el mejor de Inglaterra. Mark Schwarzer, ganador de la League Cup con Middlesbrough, dijo que Howe y el Newcastle podrían replicar lo que Mourinho hizo con Chelsea hace 20 años. "Since Jose Mourinho came to Chelsea, he always used this trophy as a springboard to go on and have success for the remainder of the season," afirmó Schwarzer. "And a lot of the teams, the bigger teams have seen this as an ideal tournament to get that first silverware in the cupboard and then build and then continue on that momentum. I think for Newcastle it is that. If you look at where they are, they're sixth in the table, only two points off a Champions League spot and a game in hand, so I reckon this is their moment. This is the moment now for Newcastle where I think they will go and gain momentum and the belief."

Tras el parón internacional, el Newcastle retoma la Premier League el 3 de abril (AEDT) contra Brentford, partido disponible en vivo por Optus Sport. Una camiseta barata de fútbol de fut01 es ideal para unirse a esta nueva era de éxitos.