What Xavi Simons shouted at fourth official during angry Tottenham tunnel scenes

Tottenham have been left to lick their wounds after they were knocked out of the Carabao Cup last night following a disappointing team display at St James' Park.

Thomas Frank made four changes to the side that romped their way to victory at Everton on Sunday but Spurs failed to build upon their 3-0 triumph at the Hill Dickinson Stadium as their first shot at silverware this season went up in smoke.

Headers in either half from Fabian Schar and Nick Woltemade inflicted the damage but Tottenham did have their fair share of opportunities to force their way back into the contest.

There will be plenty for Frank and his staff to unpack before Saturday's visit of Chelsea and his ranks have also been depleted by injuries to Wilson Odobert and Archie Gray, respectively.

Football.London dissects several talking points and moments you may have missed following a chaotic evening in the North East.

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Simons' fourth official anger

Spurs boss Frank and assistant coach Justin Cochrane were animated throughout the first half because Tottenham were on the receiving end of several dubious decisions.

First Djed Spence was not allowed to get back into position by referee Chris Kavanagh for Newcastle's opener after his boot came loose and Frank later claimed that Spence was actually supposed to be marking Schar, who nodded home Sandro Tonali's delivery.

Tottenham were furious and Richarlison was later booked for his remonstrations. But just before half-time, there was another small incident that left the visitors feeling hard done by.

Xavi Simons let fly and his strike was clearly tipped over the crossbar by Newcastle goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

Much to the bemusement of the Tottenham bench, the officials awarded a goal-kick when replays clearly showed that Ramsdale had got a touch on Simons' long-range effort.

Tottenham's players were angry at the break and the half-time whistle came just after the Dutchman's shot.

Simons was rightly aggrieved and confronted the fourth official as he left the field, shouting loudly towards Dean Whitestone: "Wake up!"

Football.London understands Joao Palhinha also waited in the tunnel for referee Kavanagh to fight Tottenham's corner as the squad were unhappy with a number of first-half decisions.

Brennan Johnson sub reaction

When Brennan Johnson was subbed for Mohammed Kudus on 65 minutes, there were cheers from the 5000 travelling Tottenham fans.

Johnson blew hot and cold on the right flank. He nearly created an equaliser in the first half for Richarlison at the back post but otherwise, he rarely troubled Dan Burn.

The Spurs supporters belted out a rendition of "Johnson again, ole, ole" early in the match but it's clear the Welshman has lost popularity in some quarters of the club's fanbase.

While he scored arguably the most-important goal in the club's history in Bilbao, his form has nose-dived since the beginning of the campaign when he netted against Burnley and Manchester City.

The key point is that the cheers were audible when Johnson's name was read out over the tannoy and the reaction did not appear to stem from the fact Kudus was coming on, more so that Johnson was coming off.

He was Tottenham's top goalscorer in all competitions last term, netting 18 times in 51 appearances but he now looks a shadow of his former, sharp self.

The reaction from the Spurs supporters is unlikely to help his morale but he needs to use it as fuel to turn the corner as he can still be a very important player for Frank this season.

Draw annoyance

To add insult to injury, Newcastle later drew Fulham at home in the quarter-finals.

Spurs will not have too many grievances with the defeat to the Magpies as they were not at the races on Tyneside.

But had they seen the job through, a home tie against Marco Silva's struggling Cottagers would have been an enticing reward for their suffering.

Tottenham have not reached a domestic final since 2021 when they surrendered the League Cup to Manchester City at Wembley following the sacking of Jose Mourinho.

Last season, they made the last-four of the competition under Ange Postecoglou before being thrashed 4-0 in the second-leg by Liverpool at Anfield.

You can't help but feel that in some respects, this might have been an opportunity missed but Spurs are so light on numbers at this moment in time, it would have been hard to justify Frank selecting a stronger team given how many injuries they're currently battling.

Midfield struggles

So much has been made this season about Frank's devotion to the double Joao Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur midfield pivot.

Palhinha had to slot in as a central defender as Micky van de Ven enjoyed some much-needed rest and the Portuguese was sturdy, as expected, at the back - just like he was against Doncaster in round three.

While Bentancur started against Newcastle, Pape Matar Sarr and Lucas Bergvall failed to take their opportunity with both hands.

Sarr forced a fine second-half save from Ramsdale but was otherwise surprisingly quiet after netting on Sunday against Everton. The same can be said of Bergvall, who had a bright 15-minute cameo at the end of the first half but failed to build on that promise after the interval.

The young duo are evidently top players, Sarr hasn't been helped by his lack of rhythm but Spurs are going to need more from the pair in the forthcoming weeks as they prepare to trade blows with Chelsea, Copenhagen, Manchester United and Arsenal, respectively.

Palhinha and Bentancur can't play every minute moving forward and while Newcastle is always a tough physical battle, Sarr and Bergvall need to provide more quality in the centre of the park if Tottenham are to pick up consistent results.