Paul Simpson faced with potentially uncomfortable Carlisle United decision: View | OneFootball

The United boss faces a tough call ahead of their cup game.

Highlights

Carlisle United manager Paul Simpson faces a tough decision ahead of the Blues' EFL Cup game against Stoke City on what to do with goalkeeper Harry Lewis, following an underwhelming performance against Gillingham.

There were many things to take from United's trip to Priestfield on Saturday. Lots of supporters will have walked away with a cocktail of contrasting thoughts in their heads.

A 4-1 defeat in which Carlisle played well for large portions of the game is something that probably wasn't expected, but that's what we were served up.

One thing that the travelling fans could have guessed would happen, but were hoping not to see, was a mistake from the goalkeeper.

In his first half-season spell with United last time out, Lewis made a fair few errors. The 26-year-old, who was previously billed as one of the best goalkeepers in League Two, didn't live up to expectations.

Harry Lewis' goalkeeping struggles

Even though there have been some occasions where he should have done better with saves, the one area that he looks to have struggled with the most since moving to Brunton Park is with claiming crosses.

It was an issue that plagued him last season, with teams beginning to target him, purposely hitting crosses towards him. That risk hasn't been dealt with over the summer, or at least it wasn't against Gillingham.

Their opening goal, which came inside the first three minutes of the contest, came as a result of Lewis failing to hold on to a cross into the box. After a missed first attempt, the ball eventually fell into the path of Timothee Dieng, who found the back of the net.

Simpson said after the game that he thought his number one should have punched it away, rather than trying to catch it.

While United did react well to going a goal behind, they never got back on level terms.

Paul Simpson's tough Harry Lewis decision

The Blues' next game sees them face Championship opposition in Stoke City in the EFL Cup on Tuesday night. It's a tight turnaround for Simpson and his players, after the long trip down to Kent, but being back at home should help their causes.

Because of a piling number of injuries, there's not much chance for rotation ahead of their derby match against Barrow on Saturday. One area of the pitch that they do have players available to make changes is in net.

Back in the Potters' heyday in the Premier League, the question of if the best teams in the world could do it on a wet, windy Tuesday night in Stoke was often asked.

They won't be playing in the blustery familiarity of home, but Steven Schumacher's side may feel the breeze on Tuesday if Carlisle's back-up keeper Gabe Breeze steps in and takes Lewis' place.

He became a cult hero among the fans during his short spell in the first team around Christmas and New Year's Day.

The mistakes of the man in front of him in the pecking order has led some to call for a return of the breeze to the Brunton Park goalmouth. The cup tie provides Simpson with a comfortable opportunity to do that, but it'll be a tough call for the boss.

He has stuck by Lewis, who he bought in January to be the club's long-term number one. If he plays him against City, there's a chance, given the gap in quality between the two teams, that another large amount of shots could go past Lewis and into Carlisle's net, which could increase the desire to see him be replaced by Breeze.

On the other hand, if the United academy graduate is given a shot against their second tier opposition, and he does well, the same reaction could occur. That is a big if, but it's not totally unbelievable.