Newcastle left it late to defeat Fulham as they once more occupy third place in the Premier League table. Alexander Isak in his first premier league fixture since September tucked the ball away in front of the Gallowgate End to send the Geordie faithful home with a smile on their face and another three points to their tally.
Newcastle named an unchanged side from their victory over Leicester City in the Carabao Cup Quarter Final. Eddie Howe continuing to support Joelinton despite his drink driving charge earlier in the week. The Newcastle manager did state that he would support his players whilst educate them. Alexander Isak took his place on the bench for the first time in a league fixture since September.
Aleksander Mitrovic returned to the lineup to face his old club after completing his suspension. Carlos Vinicius is forced to take a spot on the bench despite scoring against Chelsea last time out. Tosin Adarabioyo is dropped to the bench and Antonee Robinson missed out with suspension. They get replaced by Layvin Kurzawa and Issa Diop.
The match got underway and Newcastle got off to the better start, Willock unleashed an effort in the first couple of minutes which fizzled past the post then just a few minutes later Guimaraes played through Longstaff who hesitated in pulling the trigger which resulted in Diop managing to block at the last minute to divert it for a corner. The visitors registered their first chance shortly after the ten minute mark when Tete unleashed one from outside the box but it sailed over the bar. Diop pulled off another crucial key block with 23 minutes played when he got down low to divert Wilson’s strike following a lovely low cross into the box. Former Arsenal keeper Leno was called into action to save a header by Wilson after Trippier floated one in. Newcastle kept on the pressure towards half time, Longstaff found Willock at the front post following a nice overlap but that man Diop once more popped up to get a touch on it to steer it away from danger. Leno pulled off a fine fingertip save just a minute later to deny Wilson’s effort. Wilson once more found himself with a good opportunity in stoppage time but Leno once more was equal to it. Half Time 0-0.
Newcastle were forced to make a substitution at half time, Brazilian sensation Guimaraes forced off with an ankle injury, Saint-Maximin took his place. Longstaff scored a brilliant conversion just after the restart following some fancy footwork from Saint-Maximin. Jonny Wilkinson would have been proud of Longstaff’s effort. Wilson headed wide from a corner by Trippier in the 50th minute, the England striker will be disappointed with his missed opportunities this afternoon. Schar was unlucky not to find himself on the scoresheet with 60 minutes on the clock. The Swiss internationals low driven effort left Leno stranded but it crashed against the post and to safety. Fulham were awarded a penalty in the 65th minute after the referee judged Trippier to have fouled Reid in the box. Mitrovic stepped up to take it and even though he stuck it in the back of the net, karma prevailed and it was disallowed due to Mitrovic slipping and touching the ball twice. Saint-Maximin was unlucky not to fire the hosts ahead with 15 minutes left to play, his effort left Leno stuck in the mud but unfortunately it skimmed wide the narrowest of margins. Perseverance paid off for Newcastle as finally in the 88th minute they took the lead through Isak. Longstaff’s cross into the box was headed across goal by Wilson and Isak was in the right place in the right time to tuck it away. Despite six minutes of added time, Fulham could not stage a comeback and the scoreline finished Newcastle United 1 Fulham 0.
Sutty’s Full Time Thoughts: What a big three points for Newcastle that sends them up to third position, however the scoreline doesn’t reflect on the amount of chances they had to see the game off. Callum Wilson should have had at least three goals but Bernd Leno pulled off some smart saves to deny him. He did play a key part in the winning goal though, a nice head across goal set up Isak who was in the right place to send the Geordie faithful crazy. Let’s pray for Bruno Guimaraes though, the Brazilian superstar was in tears as he left the pitch just before half time with a heavily strapped ankle. Lets hope its not too serious. It wasn’t a penalty for the visitors so Mitrovic fluffing his golden opportunity is karma, reminds me of John Terry’s famous penalty miss in the 2008 Champions League final. We didn’t play at our best but we still managed to get the job done…a sign of champions….let’s hope that’s not a bad omen. Howay The Lads!!!
What’s Next? The Magpies travel to Crystal Palace on Saturday 21st January in a 5:30pm KO live on Sky Sports. Fulham host London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Monday 23rd January which is also on Sky Sports Premier League. KO for that match is at 8pm.
Newcastle United Line Up: N Pope, K Trippier ©, S Botman, F Schar, D Burn, J Willock (72, A Isak), S Longstaff, B Guimaraes (45, A Saint-Maximin), Joelinton, C Wilson (90+5 C Wood), M Almiron (84, J Murphy).
Newcastle United Bench: M Dubravka, J Lascelles, J Lewis, J Manquillo, J Murphy, M Ritchie, A Saint-Maximin, C Wood, A Isak.
Fulham Line Up: B Leno, K Tete, L Kurzawa, T Ream ©, I Diop (90+1 L Harris), H Reed (90+1 H Wilson), B De Cordova-Reid (90+1 C Vinicius), A Pereira (77, T Adarabioyo), Willian (77, D James), J Palhinha, A Mitrovic.
Fulham Bench: M Rodak, T Adarabioyo, H Wilson, T Cairney, N Chalobah, D James, L Harris, M Solomon, C Vinicius.
Match Officials: Robert Jones (Referee), Lee Betts & Ian Hussin (Assistant’s), Graham Scott (Fourth Official), Mike Dean (VAR), Adrian Holmes (Assistant VAR).
Match Attendance: 52,247
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