Bruno Guimaraes challenges Newcastle to retain Carabao Cup | OneFootball

Match-winner Bruno Guimaraes quickly turned his attention to Newcastle’s Carabao Cup defence after giving their faltering Premier League campaign a welcome boost.

The 27-year-old Brazil international played the captain’s role to the full on Saturday when he scored the 90th-minute goal which secured a 2-1 win over Fulham at St James’ Park.

But as the fans headed home with smiles on their faces, he was already focusing on Wednesday’s League Cup fourth-round clash with Tottenham on Tyneside and the quest to retain the trophy which ended the club’s 70-year wait for major domestic silverware last season.

Guimaraes said: “It means a lot. We want to keep making history. We went 70 years without a win, but we can make it two in two.

“It’s a big possibility, a big opportunity, so we don’t want to miss it. It’s going to be a big game for us and we hope we’re going be ready for taking advantage in the game.

“It’s a big moment, and even more because we won last season. We want to do it again, keep making history against a great and very focused team.”

Focus was something the Magpies had to maintain at the weekend when, after squandering a number of opportunities to increase the 18th-minute lead Jacob Murphy had given them, they succumbed to Sasa Lukic’s 56th-minute equaliser.

However, they did just that and with seconds of normal time remaining, Guimaraes, who had earlier passed up a glorious headed opportunity, won it with his third goal of the campaign on his 150th start for the club, pouncing on the rebound after goalkeeper Bernd Leno had saved substitute Will Osula’s shot.

Guimaraes said: “I have to be more in the box. Sometimes I miss easy goals, to be fair, and today was a good proof that I can affect the team in that way.

“It was my 150th start for the club and I was pleased to score in that opportunity. The staff have asked me to be more in the box, to help in there, and I was there in a good place to score an important goal for us.”

It has been an eventful month for Guimaraes, who started both of his country’s friendlies – in South Korea and Japan – and found himself, along with club-mate Joelinton, caught up in a mid-air drama on the way to the Far East after the plane on which they were travelling from Amsterdam to Seoul was forced to turn back because of a cracked window.

However, the Newcastle skipper has admitted he knew little about it.

He said: “I was sleeping. I just woke up and said, ‘Two hours to come back to Amsterdam?’. I didn’t understand anything. But after they explained to me that it was moving a lot during the flight.

“I was not scared. After, when I knew, I was a little bit, but during the flight, I was OK.

“Joelinton was awake and when I woke up, he said, ‘We are going back’. I couldn’t believe it. I said, ‘Are you serious?’.”