Newcastle United set for Carabao Cup final injury boost as player posts two-word update

Newcastle face Man United at Wembley Stadium this Sunday (4:30pm kick-off) with Targett set to return on the bench for the first time in 2023.

The left-back hasn’t featured in a competitive match for Newcastle since the World Cup break due to a heel injury. The left-back has been limited to just six starts in all competitions this season with Dan Burn deputising in the position in his absence.

But Targett has made an important step in his recovery from injury over the past week or so having returned to full training with the Newcastle squad. Last weekend, he also returned to action for Newcastle’s Under-21s side in a 4-1 win over Brentford B.

Targett started the match and opened the scoring before setting up the Young Magpies’ second as his cross was turned in by Remi Savage. Brentford made it 2-1 before goals from Ben Parkinson and Rodrigo Vilca saw Ben Dawson’s side secure a convincing win.

Targett played 60 minutes of the 4-1 win which confirmed his fitness just in time for the Carabao Cup final.

Ahead of the match, Magpies head coach Eddie Howe said: “Certainly, Matt Targett’s improved a lot.

“He had a game at the weekend. We thought it was wise to leave him out of the [Liverpool] game, and really pleased with his fitness.

“I was really pleased with what he did, so I’d say yeah, he’ll be available for selection.”

On the eve of the cup final, Targett took to Twitter to post two photos of him back in training along with the caption: “Let’s go.”

Targett is the only member of the Newcastle squad to have previous Carabao Cup final experience. The defender started for Aston Villa in the 2020 final against Manchester City, losing 2-1.