Saints find themselves once again in the semi finals of the Carabao AKA League cup, if they can see off Newcastle over the two legs then they will either replicate the 1979 or the 2017 final of the same competition.

If you cant get excited about a cup semi final, then I would suggest that in these modern days of haves and have nots, then their is no point in following a team anymore.

Ok if you are Manchester City or Liverpool then perhaps the Carabao Cup is not high on your priorities, but for the likes of Saints and even to a lesser degree, for the moment anyway, then this is still a big competition and the chance to win a trophy and get into Europe.

Saints showed in the last round that they can compete and take on anyone on their day, some would say that in the first half at least it was a weakened City side out, although there is some credence in that it should be noted that a City second string is still better than all but around half a dozen sides in the Premier League and that after a raft of substitutions , it was a hell of a lot stronger in the second.

So with no league fixture on Saturday and with respect an FA Cup game against a lower division side, I would hope that Nathan Jones would play a strong team against Newcastle.

I would expect some changes though, personally I would like to see places in the starting line up for both Mislav Orsic and Charly Alcatraz.

Otherwise I would pretty much keep faith with the team that started the game on Saturday against Villa.

I like the midfield trio of Lavia, Diallo & Ward Prowse, it has balance in the silky holding skills of Lavia who has the ability to burst forward as well as pass the ball and Diallo who does the donkey work and breaks up the opponents game, this allows James Ward Prowse to get forward and influence the game a lot more than he has ever truly had the chance to do.

We have the spirit to go out there and win this game, Newcastle arrive with a mixed bag of form, their last 6 games have only seen one defeat, that being a 2-1 loss to Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup, but only two wins, one against Leicester in the previous round of the Carabao Cup and the other a last minute winner against Fulham.

Draws against Leeds, Arsenal & Palace, all three 0-0, suggest a well disciplined side who are hard to beat, with the lowest goals against tally in the Premier League, but also one that struggles to score compared to the rest of the top 10 in the Premier League.

So St Mary's needs to be up for it and behind it's team tonight, as mentioned there are few highlights for the majority of the Premier League clubs these days, we are just canon fodder and even the cup competitions are dominated by a handful of clubs, this is a real opportunity to firstly get to Wembley and secondly if we can do so actually win it.

But one step at a time, first we have to get through this first leg and make sure that we are still in the tie when we go to St James Park next week.

This is a night to forget what has gone on in the first half of the league season, just concentrate on this game and enjoy it as a rare glimpse of a chance of glory.

There are still a few hundred tickets left, that is shameful, I hope I prick a few consciences and there is a late rush.

Photo: Action Images

saintmark1976 added 10:20 - Jan 24 Nick, the remaining ticket situation is caused in no small part by fans having to deal with the current cost of living crisis together with the fact that the match is live on TV. The club haven’t helped either in having a tiered ticket cost system which appears to me designed to discourage any “on the day” walk up attendance.
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highfield49 added 11:36 - Jan 24 Maybe I'm being too harsh in my view of Diallo but as much as he works hard he never seems, to me, to be comfortable on the ball and often gives away possession too easily. From that perspective I'd want to see Alcaraz given the opportunity to play most of the game so as supporters can see how good he might be in the coming months. As far as I'm concerned the cup matches are a great opportunity to get the likes of Aribo, Orsic and Mara the opportunity to shine and see if they can find a goal or two as well. Losing any of the games is less important in my view than setting up a team to fight the relegation battle next month.

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WestSussexSaint added 13:32 - Jan 24 Totally agree with Highfield on Diallo. He should be the sort of player that breaks up the opposition attack and then lays off the ball to a more attack minded and skilful team mate. He has improved a lot at the former but really struggles even with the simplest pass to a team mates Having won the ball then a poor pass either restricts any counter attacks or worse puts the team under greater pressure than the original opposition attack. Let’s see if Charley or even AMN can do better. Tonight is about staying in the tie. It will be hard enough next week against 50k success starved geordies without already being several goals in deficit.

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KriSaint added 18:06 - Jan 24 A win tonight by 1 or 2 goals would be brilliant for Saints. Even a draw gives us a chance. I hope there's something great in the air for Saints at Saint Mary's tonight <3 Saints winning the League Cup would mean the world to me. COYS <3
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