There is delight and huge celebration on Tyneside today as Newcastle U FC completed its best season in the club’s entire history. A highest ever league placing of 3rd in Brazil’s top flight was pretty excellent for Bergström and his team, which has now edged back into the top hundred clubs, but the icing on the cake was the cup run in the Copa do Brasil which Newcastle succeeded in lifting for the second time.

The cup run culminated in 2 amazing games. First there was the semi-final win against Virtual Manager giants and multiple league winners (winning 10 league titles in the last 12 seasons) Real Madrid CF https://www.virtualmanager.com/clubs/555785. The game saw Newcastle seizing home advantage in front of a full Sir Kevin Keegan stadium, with an extraordinary 3-0 win, each of Newcastle’s strikers finding the net, with Greek international and Man of the match Pan Kokotis https://www.virtualmanager.com/players/10701286-pan-kokotis rounding things off with goal number 364 in his amazing career on Tyneside, and he is still shy of his 33rd birthday.

The final saw Newcastle face league and cup rivals Reservoir Dogs, https://www.virtualmanager.com/clubs/781373 in a repeat of the semi-final that Newcastle won on their way to winning the cup the first time 11 seasons ago when Newcastle were a second tier club. The final this year was a tight game seeing only 5 shots on target, the winner coming from Newcastle’s star striker Klaus Della Vecchia, the Swiss Punisher https://www.virtualmanager.com/players/10508262-klaus-della-vecchia who capped a successful (and final) season for him at Newcastle, the winning goal making it 275 in total for the Toon. With the cup win just hours in the past, and 1 day off his 36th birthday, he made a final big money transfer and will end his career playing in the Turkish Super League, with tremendous gratitude and thanks from Rolf and the boys at Newcastle for his service to the club.

However the biggest story of the final was the performance of team captain and goalkeeper Robbie Conry. https://www.virtualmanager.com/players/10622324-robbie-conry. This was his final day before retiring from football age 34. The Ulsterman has been a mainstay of Newcastle’s rise and rise, notching over 500 games over 16 seasons, and scooping up 128 Man of the match awards. That’s a lot of champagne! This final season saw him average 8.4 to equal his best ever, showing that he has lost none of his skills or athleticism. Making two vital, match-winning saves in this season’s cup final will be as memorable for him as the rest of his team carrying him round The Hideout https://www.virtualmanager.com/clubs/781373/stadium on their shoulders, what a way to end your career!

Fortunately for Newcastle and thanks to Bergström’s planning, taking over the green jersey and gloves will be classy Argentine Julio Cesar Pace https://www.virtualmanager.com/players/10933799-julio-cesar-pace who joined the Tynesiders 6 seasons ago and who has already started 92 games as understudy to Conry, so is already well integrated into the team.

Last time Newcastle won a cup final they managed to get through to the following season’s final to defend it, can a repeat be possible???