North East | Eddie Howe spoke to the press before Spurs cup tie

Newcastle United v Tottenham Hotspur preview

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe spoke to the media before the EFL Cup game against Tottenham

Author | Ryan Gates

Stadium | St. James' Park

Newcastle players and fans celebrate v Fulham

Highlights from the press conference

Sven Botman does not have a concussion after being forced off against Fulham, but the defender did not take part in training on Monday.

Elsewhere, Lewis Hall is the closest to returning from injury, though Tottenham comes too soon, while Tino Livramento is "on track" with Howe predicting the Manchester City fixture on 22 November for his comeback.

Yoane Wissa is also progressing as expected, but the striker will still require a "mini pre-season" before Howe can set a return date.

Praise for Will Osula

He played a crucial role in the winning goal against Fulham on Saturday despite managing an ankle injury, and the Magpies boss is "relieved" he did not go out on loan during the summer. Howe said: "Will is vitally important, he is quick, he is athletic. He has a good attitude and better know how to manage game situations. He is now coming on the pitch looking like a complete package."

He added: "Great personality, a real zest for life, he has very close friendships, he is very serious about his work. He is very serious about his development and his game."

Jacob Ramsey has returned to competition for a starting place, but Howe acknowledged that the midfielder needs to be "physically at his best" before his "technical abilities can shine".

Reflecting on winning the competition last season

Howe said: "That feeling was incredible. One of the big drivers once you've experienced that is you want it again and again as quickly as possible. We don't have unlimited opportunities for that so this is one of those chances to go far in a competition, go deep and try and repeat the experience. These early rounds are really difficult. It leaves us on no uncertain terms of what we have to do."

Eddie Howe on the importance of the Carabao Cup:

"We’ve had a lot of great experiences in this competition, the first final, the emotions after the game, felt we could have done more on the pitch. The Chelsea defeat is still very painful, we had a chance to win the competition… pic.twitter.com/h9vpcSfPe4

— Newcastle United (@NUFC) October 28, 2025

The progress Spurs have made under Thomas Frank

Facing Spurs will be one of the "bigger challenges" for Howe's side as they take on a team unbeaten away from home under Thomas Frank.

Howe added: "Tactically, very interesting and very versatile. They build up in lots of different ways. Very aggressive off the ball. They have different ways to make things happen including set plays. Very well organised and ultimately, set plays are a big guider of that. Credit to him [Frank] and his coaching staff to what they're doing."