Newcastle United must now galvanise ahead of the Carabao Cup final after being dealt a bad hand in their 2-0 defeat against Liverpool.
With Nick Pope suspended the incident also highlighted the lack of back-up options in the goalkeeper department with Loris Karius now expected to play his first game in two years. Not since a 1-1 draw for Union Berlin against Hoffenheim has Karius played a competitive game when he appeared in the Bundesliga in February 2021.
The other option is Geordie goalkeeper Mark Gillespie with his last piece of senior action coming even longer ago back in 2020 during the lockdown when he played in goal against Newport County in the League Cup on a night in which United won on penalties. Gillespie, a boyhood Toon fan who came through the Academy before heading to Carlisle, Walsall and Motherwell to make a living, is no stranger to the big occasion though.
READ MORE: Nick Pope suspended for Carabao Cup final after Liverpool red card leaving Newcastle in trouble
For Gillespie has been between the posts in big crunch games for Motherwell at places like Ibrox and Parkhead facing Rangers and Celtic north of the border. He also played in the play-offs Carlisle and then once played in one of the longest ever penalty shoot-outs for the Cumbrians against Derby County at Pride Park, only to lose 14-13 despite holding the Championship side to a 1-1 draw.
Karius has played for Newcastle this season more recently and is the firm favourite to play at Wembley for Eddie Howe's side. Howe, of course, must motivate both players this week, knowing that Gillespie could only be a heartbeat away from the game of his life at the venue of legends.
Although, Karius looked good - albeit in a friendly - away to Al-Hilal in that winter exhibition game on a balmy night in Saudi Arabia last year. Then he pulled off a string of saves against the Saudi Pro League side in the Middle East.
It didn't take long for Karius' last appearance in a big final, the Champions League of 2018, to come up after Pope's red card when the goalkeeper suffered concussion and then made two errors against Real Madrid for Liverpool. He addressed this one final time down a corridor after Al-Hilal last year, telling reporters: "I have said everything about this. For me, it is tiring to keep talking about it, it's football and things happen."
After the game, Howe simply said: "We have Loris and Mark, who have trained really well this season and been part of the goalkeeping team all season. They’re both fit and ready to play."
Not since 1990 has the chatter around who plays in goal in a major final dominated the headlines. Back then, in the FA Cup final, Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson had to make a huge call on his keepers.
In the first game a 3-3 draw with Crystal Palace, Fergie dropped Jim Leighton after a couple of mistakes. He replaced him with Les Sealey in the replay which Man United won.
Ferguson explained after it: "Jim Leighton was the best keeper. Les wasn't the best keeper, but he thought he was." Leighton never spoke to Fergie again after that but his managerial acumen won him his first major trophy at Old Trafford with a 1-0 win over Palace.
Not that Fergie will have any interest in advising anybody outside the Man United camp this week though. Whoever, Howe selects could end up writing their name into Tyneside folklore. If Gillespie plays any part and wins, he'd never have to buy a pint in Newcastle again!
Liverpool fans serve reminder to last trophy win - but it could be one final time
As the game reached an end at St James' Park, with Liverpool 2-0 up, the Kop fans chanted: "You've never won a trophy - since 1969."
With the last skipper to win something in Bob Moncur watching from the stands, and Newcastle's 1998 skipper Rob Lee also a guest of the club, it was a reminder that wasn't needed.
But as we look forward to Wembley, Newcastle could be 90 minutes away from being the target of such taunts from rival clubs for a long time IF they get it right in the capital next week.
United fall short at the last hurdle to write a new club record
The modern Magpies must now share a club record with Chris Hughton's side after their unbeaten run ended at the 17-game mark, the same as the class of 2010 in the Championship.
Newcastle went into the game knowing that 18 games unscathed in the league would have set a new record but must now build again. The defeat was also the first at home since last April.
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