Arsenal Under-21s 2 Newcastle United Under-21s 1 | OneFootball

The young Magpies, who finished in ninth place of the 26-team division to book their place in the last-16 stage, fell behind before the half-hour mark at Meadow Park following Nathan Butler-Oyedeji's penalty before Scott Bailey's impressive lob from distance levelled the tie within a minute of the restart.

United's second-string created a number of goalscoring opportunities before being dealt a devastating blow in the final minutes of the tie as Edwards, introduced from the bench in the closing stages, netted from the penalty spot to secure the Gunners' passage into the quarter-final stages.

Diarmuid O'Carroll made four changes from the side which suffered a 4-0 defeat against table toppers Manchester City last week as Ben Parkinson, who made his Premier League debut for his boyhood club during last season's away clash against AFC Bournemouth in November 2023, returned to the starting XI as well as goalkeeper Aidan Harris and midfield duo Jay Turner-Cooke and Bailey.

With a quarter-final tie away at Manchester City or Liverpool awaiting the winner, Newcastle fell behind in the 26th minute as Butler-Oyedeji, who made his Premier League debut against Ipswich Town last weekend, stroked his spot-kick down the middle beyond the diving Magpies goalkeeper, Aidan Harris.

Sean Neave, who was named on the bench for Newcastle's Carabao Cup final victory against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium last month, went close to netting a fifth goal in his last six Premier League 2 matches as the 17-year-old striker's strike inside the penalty area was pushed out for a corner by Arsenal goalkeeper Tommy Setford, United's sole shot on target during the first-half.

Newcastle's second-string, who suffered a 4-1 loss against their Gunners counterparts in February, equalised inside the opening 60 seconds of the second-half as Bailey, who signed his first professional contract with the Magpies last summer, netted his first goal at under-21 level in spectacular fashion.

After catching Setford off his line from distance, the Durham-born midfielder's audacious long-range strike flew over the Gunners goalkeeper before dropping underneath the crossbar.

Anthony Munda, a representative of England at under-18 level, went close to firing the visitors ahead as the Cowgate-born midfielder, who made his first-team debut during Newcastle's pre-season victory away at Hull City last summer, almost completed a neat team move but could only drill his resulting effort into the side-netting.

Jay Turner-Cooke, who scored his first goal at first-team level during Newcastle's 3-2 win against Gateshead in July 2023, went close to firing the visitors ahead as the South Shields-born midfielder's free-kick was tipped over the crossbar by Setford.

With the full-time whistle approaching, and the prospect of extra-time, Newcastle fell behind for a second time after conceding another penalty in the third minute of stoppage-time, with Edwards dispatching the resulting spot-kick from 12 yards.

Newcastle United Under-21s: Aidan Harris, Leo Shahar, Cathal Heffernan (c), Ciaran Thompson, Dylan Charlton (Rory Powell 63), Scott Bailey, Anthony Munda, Jay Turner-Cooke (Trevan Sanusi 90), Ben Parkinson, Garang Kuol, Sean Neave (Josh Donaldson 90).

Subs not used: James Taylor, Alfie Harrison.