Newcastle United needed 81 minutes and two goals from a former West Brom player to see off West Brom. Harvey Barnes struck twice as the Magpies survived a genuine scare at St James' Park on Wednesday night, beating the Championship side 3-2 to reach the Carabao Cup third round.
Price puts the Baggies in front
Isaac Price gave West Brom the lead with a free-kick that gave the Newcastle goalkeeper no realistic chance. For a side several divisions removed from their hosts, the visitors did not sit back and hope. They kept the ball when they won it and made Newcastle work for every entry into the final third.
Newcastle's answer came from an unfamiliar source. Bazoumana Toure, making his debut, levelled before the break. Barnes, introduced from the bench, put the hosts in front after the restart, and at 2-1 the tie looked like it had settled into its expected shape.
The twist on 77 minutes
It hadn't. Price won and converted a penalty in the 77th minute to make it 2-2, and suddenly a Championship side were twenty minutes from taking a Premier League club to penalties. West Brom had earned it. Two goals from Price, both taken with real composure, and a defensive shape that had frustrated Newcastle for long stretches.
Four minutes later Barnes settled it. Against the club where he came through as a teenager on loan, he took his second of the night and Newcastle escaped.
What it says about the squad
Eddie Howe's side got what they came for, which was progression and minutes for players who need them. Toure's debut goal was the clearest positive. The clearest negative was how easily West Brom found a way back into a game they had no business being level in with a quarter of an hour left.
Cup ties like this rarely mean much in September and get replayed endlessly in May. Newcastle are through. They were also, for about four minutes, closer to going out than anyone in black and white would care to admit.
Match facts: Newcastle United 3-2 West Bromwich Albion, Carabao Cup second round, St James' Park, Wednesday 26 August 2026. Scorers: Toure, Barnes (2, the winner on 81); Price (2, including a 77th-minute penalty) for West Brom.
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