Le Journal

Newcastle United have been drawn away to Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth round, setting up an all-Premier League tie at Villa Park next month. The draw was made on Monday night and confirmed that Eddie Howe’s side will travel to the Midlands for a place in the fifth round of the competition. The tie is scheduled to take place over the weekend of Saturday, February 14, 2026, with an exact date and kick-off time to be confirmed. The matchup emerged as one of the standout fixtures of the round, with several top-flight clubs paired together. Alongside Aston Villa versus Newcastle United, Arsenal were drawn at home to Wigan Athletic, while Chelsea will travel to Hull City. Manchester City could host Salford City, should the League Two side progress from their postponed third-round tie against Swindon Town. Newcastle reached the fourth round after progressing through the third round earlier this month, while Aston Villa also secured their place with a home victory. The draw means Newcastle face another away challenge against Premier League opposition, having already navigated a demanding domestic schedule across league and cup competitions. The FA Cup schedule for the remainder of the 2025–26 competition has also been confirmed. The fifth round will take place over the weekend of March 7, followed by the quarter-finals on April 4 and the semi-finals on April 25. The final is scheduled for Saturday, May 16, 2026. Full FA Cup 4-Round Draw Aston Villa vs Newcastle United Arsenal vs Wigan Athletic Hull City vs Chelsea Wrexham vs Ipswich Town Macclesfield Town vs Brentford Manchester City vs Salford City or Swindon Town Burnley vs Mansfield Town Norwich City vs West Bromwich Albion Port Vale vs Bristol City Grimsby Town vs Wolverhampton Wanderers Southampton vs Leicester City Oxford United vs Sunderland Stoke City vs Fulham Burton Albion vs West Ham United Birmingham City vs Leeds United Liverpool or Barnsley vs Brighton & Hove Albion

Alors que la Formule 1 se prépare aux premiers essais hivernaux de 2026, Red Bull avance une proposition radicale concernant la gouvernance des nouvelles unités de puissance. Le constructeur autrichien plaide pour une suppression pure et simple de l'homologation des moteurs, afin de laisser place à une véritable guerre du développement. À partir de cette saison, Red Bull exploitera sa propre unité de puissance, conçue en interne par Red Bull Powertrains dans le cadre d'un partenariat (…)

Sven Botman has committed his long-term future to Newcastle United by signing a new contract on Monday, ending all uncertainty around his status and future in Tyneside following recent injury issues and wider squad instability. The centre-back’s previous deal, agreed when he arrived from Lille in 2022, had been due to expire at the end of the 2026–27 season. The club confirmed the extension on Sunday, securing one of Eddie Howe’s most trusted defensive options beyond that point. “I’m really happy to sign this contract,” Botman said. “This club has given me so much in the last three-and-a-half years. “I’ve grown as a person and as a player here and I feel like I have so much more to give in the long term. That’s why both parties are really happy with this decision and I’m looking forward to what’s coming in the future here.” Botman, 25, has made 17 appearances across all competitions this season and recently returned from a back injury that sidelined him between November and December. Newcastle confirmed he saw a specialist before making his comeback in last week’s 4–3 Premier League win over Leeds United. Eddie Howe welcomed the agreement, highlighting both Botman’s importance and his potential ceiling. “We’re delighted that Sven has committed his long-term future to the club,” Howe said. “He has been an outstanding player for us since he joined and I firmly believe there’s more to come from him.” “Sven has a strong mentality and work ethic, which is clear every time he trains or plays. We value his presence on and off the pitch and I’m really pleased to see his long-term future secured here.” Since joining Newcastle, Botman has made 94 appearances, with nearly half coming during his debut campaign, when the club finished fourth in the Premier League. Botman’s time on Tyneside has been disrupted by significant injuries, including an ACL issue that limited him to 10 games last season while ruling him out of the Carabao Cup final victory over Liverpool.

The Daily Mail’s Craig Hope has argued that 2026 must become a decisive year for Newcastle United’s ownership, insisting that the Public Investment Fund can no longer rely on ambition and messaging alone without delivering visible, structural change. Hope framed his argument by comparing Newcastle’s trajectory to Manchester City following their Abu Dhabi takeover. “When Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi owners completed their takeover in 2008, they set about building a new football club,” Hope wrote. “When spades went into the ground and cranes rose into the sky, the club’s ascent was accelerated and its future underpinned.” Hope contrasted that with Newcastle’s position more than four years into PIF ownership. “More than four years into the Saudi-led ownership of Newcastle, such foundations remain largely aspirational,” Hope wrote. “That is why 2026 must be the year in which the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia signal their ambition, not by promises, but by some very public investment.” Hope stressed that PSR cannot be used as a defence when it comes to infrastructure. “There are no spending restrictions when it comes to training grounds, stadiums and regeneration projects,” Hope wrote. The insider argued that Newcastle’s recent success has been driven primarily by Eddie Howe and his players rather than financial muscle. “Since 2021, Eddie Howe, his staff and his players have been the overriding reason why, from a starting point of 19th, Newcastle have disrupted the established order,” Hope wrote. “They have overachieved under Howe and continue to do so.” Hope warned that this progress risks stalling without tangible backing from ownership. “That, however, will only take a club so far and, of late, it feels like Newcastle have been banging their head against the Premier League’s ceiling.” Central to his argument is the training ground, which he believes matters more to players than a new stadium. “This, more than a new stadium, matters to players — they use it every day, not fortnightly,” Hope wrote. “There have been and are improvements but, as one source put it last year, ‘it is like putting lipstick on a pig’.” Hope concluded that intent now needs to be demonstrated, not described. “That is why 2026 must be PIF’s year of proof, not promises.”