The irony will certainly not be lost on Mikel Arteta. On a night when his side were hoping to get a foothold in the Carabao Cup final, it was Alexander Isak – a striker the Arsenal manager had long coveted – who did the damage and secured Newcastle a famous victory.

It was nothing less than Eddie Howe’s side deserved as they hoped to reach the final again in 2023 after their painful defeat to Manchester United at Wembley. Goals either side of half-time from Isak – his 10th in his last nine appearances – and Anthony Gordon ensured they will go into next month’s second leg at St James’ Park with a comfortable lead. While Arsenal had 23 chances in total, only three were on target and there was no need for referee John Brooks to explain the video assistant referee’s decisions to the crowd. This initiative was tested in the semi-finals when the hosts struggled to respond after falling behind. They left the pitch to a few boos from the fans remaining at the end and Arsenal’s hopes of winning a second major trophy since Arteta took over now appear to have receded into the distance. But the Newcastle fans who serenaded Howe and his players after the final whistle can almost start planning another trip to London in March.

The extent to which this competition has moved up the priority list of both clubs is reflected in the strength of both starting elevens. But while Arsenal’s situation has been defined by a lack of options in attack after teenager Ethan Nwaneri suffered a muscle injury against Brighton that left him on the sidelines alongside Bukayo Saka, Arteta may have some regrets in this contest to have given so much importance given their ambitions to win bigger trophies in the future. After somehow failing to find a way past the enthusiastic Martin Dubravka, who appeared to say an emotional farewell to Newcastle fans at the end after it was reported that he would be joining Saudi club Al-Shabab, Jurriën missed out Timber and Gabriel Martinelli golden chances In the first half, a poor header from Kai Havertz, which fell off the shoulder when the score was 2-0, made for a disappointing evening for the home team.

Newcastle’s run of five consecutive Premier League wins has been accompanied by a reshuffle of its midfield to accommodate Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimarães. But the Brazilian’s suspension led to Howe turning to Joe Willock – another Arsenal academy graduate who was allowed to leave north London by Arteta in 2021 and made a real move before making way 25 minutes before the end of the game.

With his side in such good form, Howe admitted this competition could be their best chance of ending their quest for a major domestic trophy, which famously goes back to their FA Cup victory in 1955. However, they came up against an Arsenal side desperate to put their name to the test as near-men and get out of the blocks. Timber should have made more of Declan Rice’s corner, which went over Dubravka’s head early on, but he was unable to direct the header on goal. Martinelli then hit a post when brilliantly passed through by Martin Ødegaard, before Newcastle somehow saved another corner when Dubravka flapped for the ball and missed it completely.

But the 6,000 traveling fans at the Clock End were able to cheer as the Newcastle goalkeeper pumped a free kick forward and it was fired on by Sven Botman. Jacob Murphy’s touch brought the ball perfectly into the path of Isak and from that moment on there was no doubt about the result as his finish into the net left David Raya no chance. Arsenal shied away from paying the Swedish striker’s release clause when he was at Real Sociedad before his eventual £63million move to Newcastle. Chelsea had reportedly quoted £150m for the summer purchase. Arteta wishes they had pursued that interest now.

There was even more concern at Arsenal when Leandro Trossard hobbled down the tunnel at half-time after colliding with Gordon. It was a surprise when the Belgian striker came back into the game, but his side soon found themselves two goals down after another piece of brilliance from Isak. A clever one-two with Murphy brought him into the box and his shot was parried by Raya straight into the path of Gordon, who tapped into the empty net to the delight of the fans behind the goal.

Arsenal were on the edge and just managed to keep out a dangerous cross from Tonali. Arteta’s head was in his hands as Havertz somehow managed to make contact with his shoulder while the goal was open after the ball flew up from Trossard’s cross. The Arsenal boss turned to Gabriel Jesus – the hat-trick hero in the quarter-final win over Crystal Palace – from the bench, but his first action was to head over another Rice corner when it seemed easier to score.

Howe sacrificed Murphy and Isak as Newcastle tried to close the ball down, with Joelinton blocking a shot from Jorginho before Martinelli’s follow-up shot was wide of the goal. But that, and the Italian midfielder’s late shot clearing Dubravka’s crossbar, came so close to finding a way back into this tie, leaving Newcastle on the verge of another final and their long-suffering fans in dreamland.