Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe admits it is difficult to completely "get over" the Magpies' Carabao Cup final defeat against Sunday's opponents Manchester United.
The Red Devils won 2-0 at Wembley in February as Newcastle's first major final since 1999 ended in disappointment as Man United edged to contest in the capital. Newcastle now face up to Erik ten Hag's again this weekend although Howe insists he does not have revenge on his mind.
Howe said ahead of Sunday's big game: "Am I over it? I don't think you ever get over a defeat, any defeat you have is still in there somewhere.
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"I tend not to dwell on it because it's history. You have to move on quickly. There will be occasions where I've flashed back to a moment from the game and it's still there. Hopefully we can get rid of that."
Howe's side face 12 games in April and May and the series of tough fixtures will determine whether they make it into the Champions League or not.
But the boss is looking forward to the upcoming schedule and said: "It's a massive month. Whenever you have an intense period of games, those results are going to define what we do this season.
"The last two results have put us in a really strong position and also lifted confidence levels and morale within the squad. This is going to be a big week to come. We've got Manchester United first and we have to focus on that alone and learn our lessons from the cup final defeat, analyse that game, and try and improve."
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