Newcastle to take on Northampton Town in Capital One Cup

Newcastle United's march to [insert sponsor here] League Cup glory will start with a home match against Northampton Town, the former club of new signing Ivan Toney.  It will be a strange feeling for Newcastle fans as "home cup tie" is almost as rare as the fabled "unicorn" which will be compounded by something they tell us is called "trying" in the the competition.  We are meant to assume that the "trying" that has been referred to will pertain to the effort put in squad selection and effort on the pitch instead of "trying the fans' nerves", but that will remain to be seen.

Having drawn against League Two opposition would likely feel like a great opportunity to most Premier League clubs, but recent history suggests to NUFC fans that it could be another opportunity for their club to be used to illustrate that the romance of the cup competitions is still alive.  Steve McClaren has said he would approach these competitions differently, and he now has his chance.  He can start to show the fans that this, too, will be different.  Take care of business and move along.