Eddie Howe fires Carabao Cup final warning to Newcastle United players after Man City loss

The Magpies lost 4-0 against Manchester City on Saturday in what was their third defeat in four Premier League games after AFC Bournemouth and Fulham.

But while their league form has taken a dip, United have performed strongly in the cups having last week beat Arsenal 4-0 on aggregate to set up a League Cup final with Liverpool on Sunday, March 16.

That has led to suggestions Howe’s players are already focused on their Wembley visit as they look to end their 70-year domestic trophy drought - but Howe dismissed those claims.

Indeed, Newcastle’s head coach has sent a warning to his players that taking their eye off the ball could derail their league campaign.

United have slipped to seventh in the table ahead of hosting third-place Nottingham Forest at St James’ Park next Sunday, where they will have the opportunity to cut the gap between the two clubs to three points.

“If that is the case, we're in trouble because our Premier League season will be over really by the time that final comes around, it can't be the focus,” warned Howe.

“It's on the horizon, it should be a positive, it shouldn't be a negative distraction for us. I'd encourage the players to look at it that way, it's an excitement, but we have to go back to work, and work is the Premier League the day in, day out.

“We have to perform better, that's three of our last performances in the Premier League that haven't been good enough, and they've all had similar traits in them. So, yeah, back to basics for us, I think, for next week.”

Howe added: “I can't stop other people talking about it, and we've tried to address it internally and then put it away.

“I don't know, people will naturally assume that the cup final may be a negative distraction, and it certainly wasn't a great performance from us today, but, yeah, I've needed probably a little bit of time before sticking my colours to the mask to see what went wrong today.”

In other news, here are our Newcastle United player ratings from the 4-0 defeat against Man City.