Birmingham vs Newcastle LIVE: FA Cup result and reaction as Willock wins it late on for Magpies
Birmingham 2-3 Newcastle: Magpies recovered from conceding within 44 seconds to overcome the League One leaders
Joe Willock’s brace helped Newcastle United eke past Birmingham City in an FA Cup thriller to progress into the fifth round of the competition.
Birmingham took the lead inside a minute through ex-Man United prodigy Ethan Laird, who smashed past Nick Pope with the help of a deflection from Callum Wilson.
The Magpies then flipped the game on its head thanks to two goals that didn’t go without controversy from Willock and Wilson, with many questioning if Newcastle’s equaliser fully went over the line.
However, the highlight of the first half came when Tomoki Iwata leathered it into the top-right corner to draw parity for the Blues - an early goal of the tournament contender.
After a fiery second half, Willock’s second of the night sealed Newcastle’s win late on, ending Birmingham’s hopes of a major Premier League scalp in the cup.
Relive all the FA Cup action with our live blog below:
GOAL! Birmingham 1-1 Newcastle
21 mins: GOAL! Newcastle do have their equaliser - but it isn’t without controversy.
Osula latches onto Wilson’s cross and pulls it back to Willock, whose effort looks to be incredibly saved by Peacock-Farrell.
However, the linesman signals that the ball went over the line, awarding the goal to Newcastle.
Replays aren’t definitive in showing whether it fully crossed the line. But with no VAR or goal-line technology, the goal stands!
Birmingham 1-0 Newcastle
19 mins: Newcastle enjoying much of the ball but it’s when the hosts gain possession that you feel another goal might be on the cards.
Magpies are happy to be patient with it, while the Blues are equally content with pouncing on the counter.
Birmingham 1-0 Newcastle
15 mins: SAVE! Anderson catches a volley delightfully on the edge of the box, requiring the outstretched arm of Nick Pope to deny Birmingham a second.
It took a slight deflection of Dan Burn which made the effort even harder to stop.
Birmingham 1-0 Newcastle
12 mins: Livramento shows great tenacity to get to the byline and pull it back towards a Newcastle shirt.
Birmingham get bodies in the way to make a goal-saving block.
Birmingham 1-0 Newcastle
9 mins: Newcastle are gaining a foothold in the contest.
William Osula gets taken out by Alex Cochrane after beating his man with a step over, and are now enjoying a lot of possession.
They’re trying to take the sting out of this.
Birmingham 1-0 Newcastle
4 mins: It’s been a frantic start at St. Andrews.
Birmingham get another set-piece opportunity and whip in a second inviting delivery of the game so far, this time it’s cleared by Newcastle.
When you want to cause an upset, that’s how you kick things off.
GOAL! Birmingham 1-0 Newcastle
1 min: GOAL! AND THEY’VE ONLY SCORED FROM THAT CORNER!
Former Man United prospect Ethan Laird smashes past Pope from close range, with a big deflection off Callum Wilson helping it on its way.
What a noise. What a start.
KICK-OFF! Birmingham 0-0 Newcastle
1 min: KICK-OFF! We’re underway at St. Andrews.
Within 20 seconds, Birmingham have a corner.
Here come the players
Both sets of players are making their way out to an electric St. Andrews atmosphere, on a gloomy late afternoon.
Kick-off imminent.
Jay Stansfield speaks on his record transfer fee
Jay Stansfield’s arrival in League One broke all the norms the division had previously known, with his £12m transfer fee obliterating the previous record for an acquisition.
Even the player himself knows how crazy it was for Birmingham to shell out that much cash.
“I wouldn’t say I feel under pressure,” Stansfield told BBC Sport.
“I think it’s a crazy fee to be honest and it’s privileged to have that fee on my back and I can’t thank club for having faith and backing me to be a player of that quality.”
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