It was nowhere near as exciting as last weekend’s thriller against West Ham United, but Newcastle United scored late once again to boost their prospects of qualifying for Europe next season.
Their 1-0 victory at Fulham, secured courtesy of Bruno Guimaraes’ 81st-minute strike, means Eddie Howe’s side have taken seven points from nine after the victory against West Ham and the midweek draw with Everton.
George Caulkin and Chris Waugh address the key questions from the game…
Were Newcastle inspired by VAR decision?
Dan Burn definitely did barge into Calvin Bassey’s back with a leading elbow shortly before Fabian Schar drove in what appeared to be Newcastle’s opener, but whether it was such an obvious error as to be overturned by VAR is another matter.
Newcastle fans will certainly feel aggrieved about the decision, which denied Schar an excellent goal after the centre-back somehow found an angle at the back post to finish inside the near post. Bassey was probably not even going to win the ball but, after watching several replays, Sam Allison, the referee, disallowed Schar’s goal, having been advised to go to his monitor by Jarred Gillett, the VAR.
Less than four minutes later, however, Newcastle had the ball in the back of the net again — and there was no reason for VAR to intervene and chalk this one off.
Substitute Harvey Barnes attacked down the left and whipped in a dangerous cross which Antonee Robinson could only divert towards a late-arriving Guimaraes. The Brazilian met the ball first time and hit a low shot down to Bernd Leno’s left. The Fulham goalkeeper got a hand to it, but could not keep it out.
On his 100th Newcastle appearance, Guimaraes once again underscored his importance to this team. Newcastle simply do not win without him — and no wonder Howe is trying to deter Paris Saint-Germain and other potential suitors ahead of the summer window.
Chris Waugh
Was this ‘bad win’ the sign of a good team?
Howe makes great play of keeping his emotions in check on the touchline, but 20 minutes in he looked as angry as he gets. Martin Dubravka was down for treatment and the entire team had been called over towards the bench.
By that stage, Fulham had mustered 76 per cent possession. Newcastle had scarcely turned up, let alone laid a glove on their opponents. Howe was furious; where was the intent, the intensity? His team was in dire need of shaking up.
Slowly, Newcastle improved, although slowly was the operative word. By the 42nd minute, they had managed three touches in the Fulham box. By half-time, they had managed no shots on target and no corners, but had become more of a threat. Crucially, they were still alive.
Ultimately, this goes down as a great bad win which, after all, is supposedly the hallmark of a decent team. In terms of their away form — they had lost seven of their previous nine league matches away from St James’ Park — it represents something closer to a miracle.
My goodness, they had to work hard for their first — and only — away league clean sheet since Sheffield United in late September, when they won 8-0. They were a different team back then, but seven points from the past nine says something about their attitude.
This was not the Newcastle that swarms over other teams, pressing them and harrying them. But it was an echo of last season’s joint-best defensive unit. In that regard, they were outstanding. They rode their luck, took their punches and then slowly roused themselves, which is not their traditional way of doing things. Needs must, and they desperately needed to get better.
George Caulkin
Was there another injury? Of course there was
Howe declared himself “tired” of talking about injuries at his pre-match press conference and everyone associated with Newcastle must be sick of watching players forced off. It is genuinely every match at the moment — and sometimes even on multiple occasions in the same game.
This time it was Joe Willock who departed, a player making just his fifth Premier League start of the campaign due to a succession of hamstring and Achilles injuries. The 24-year-old appeared to catch his foot on Andreas Pereira when he won the ball from the Fulham forward, before releasing Anthony Gordon down the left.
Beyond that, Willock had largely been a passenger — he still does not look physically back to his best following a disrupted campaign — and Elliot Anderson, himself being eased back from a four-month injury lay-off with a back problem, came on in the 40th minute.
Willock became the latest Newcastle player to go off injured (Henry Browne/Getty Images)
Given Newcastle’s depleted resources, that left only Barnes as a genuine attacking option for Howe to call upon during the second half. Barnes, too, is yet another player who Howe is trying to protect minutes-wise due to a foot problem that has restricted him to only four league starts.
No matter where you look throughout this Newcastle squad, there are fitness issues — and that includes a significant portion of the players still playing. It simply feels interminable.
Chris Waugh
What did Howe say?
We will bring you this after he has spoken at the post-match press conference.
What next for Newcastle?
Saturday, April 13: Tottenham Hotspur (H), Premier League, 12.30pm BST, 7.30am ET
Recent history suggests this won’t be dull: the past five meetings include Spurs winning 5-1 and 4-1 and Newcastle demolishing them 6-1, while the most recent goalless draw between the clubs was in 1971.
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(Top photo: Alex Davidson/Getty Images)
