Newcastle star Jacob Murphy warned his cheeky taunt could come back to bite him from Southampton boss Nathan Jones

NATHAN JONES has warned Newcastle that Jacob Murphy’s antics could come back to bite them tonight.

The Toon winger waved goodbye to Saints defender Duje Caleta-Car after being sent off in the first leg of last week’s Carabao Cup semifinal game.

2

2

Caleta-Car has served his suspension and now Jones is hoping his team has caught fire from the incident and can settle some scores at St James’ Park.

Jones said: “It adds bite, it could be. I’ve been in games where there was a bit of nagging and a bit of leftovers that sometimes come back to bite you, and let’s hope that’s the case.

“My motivation is to win the game and try to bring Southampton to Wembley. I will do everything to do that – within reason.”

The Saints travel to Tyneside with a clear task, knowing they need to score at least once to reach the Carabao Cup final for the first time since 2017.

And although there will be a deafening atmosphere tonight, Jones relishes the opportunity to spoil the party.

He added: “It’s a wonderful cup game, a semi-final. That’s why you come into sports and into management. You want to prove yourself at the highest level.

“If you fail, you fail. But if you succeed, the rewards are enormous.

“Mentally we prepare players for a noisy atmosphere, but these are the games you play in and want to manage.

FREE BETS AND SIGN UP OFFERS – THE BEST DEALS FOR NEW CUSTOMERS

“These are the games where you don’t want to wither, you want to get up and be counted and I’m more excited about that than worried.”

Former Newcastle player Adam Armstrong saw a goal ruled out for handball in the first leg, while Che Adams missed a golden chance to put the south coast side ahead of Joelinton’s goal.

Adams has been struggling for form in front of goal lately and hasn’t scored since scoring twice in a previous round of the competition against League One Lincoln City.

But Jones, who is keen to sign a striker before the night is out, is confident the Scotland international will do well.

He said: “It’s not so much that he’s struggling because his all-around game is great. Then you just have to make decisions without fear or worry.

“If he then did that brilliantly, he would be in a better place. It only takes one to go in and then I’m sure he’ll run.

“Yeah, he missed a couple of big chances but he was really good for me.

“People just have to put themselves in big positions and he’s doing that and he’s not shying away from it and I know he’s going to do well.”