Newcastle beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 at St James’ Park on Sunday to remain unbeaten in the Premier League.
Eddie Howe’s men looked solid for most of the game, while Spurs’ attack put Newcastle’s victory in jeopardy on points.
The Magpies go into the international break unbeaten in the 2024/25 season, while Spurs face the tough task of a highly-anticipated north London derby in two weeks’ time.
How did the game happen?
Newcastle rose to the occasion early on, firing two hard shots past Guglielmo Vicario between the sticks. Both Alexander Isak and Harvey Barnes were close to getting their names on the score sheet but were forced to wait as the shot found the back of the net.
Cristian Romero thought he would open the scoring for Tottenham, sending a strike past Nick Pope. The goal was flagged for offside, keeping the score at 0-0.
The game was stopped for a while as assistant referee Ian Hussin noticed a problem with his hamstring. He traded places with fourth man Darren Bond and both sides returned to action.
The break turned out to be exactly what Spurs needed, with Newcastle firing a shot at Pope on goal. When the Magpies came out of the clutches of Spurs, they once again proved that they are part of the fear.
It was Barnes who finally got the goal he deserved, firing into the far corner to make it 1-0 to Newcastle before the break.
Play resumed and Spurs were given something to prove. Their equalizer came soon after, as Son Heung-min fired into the net. Pope gave his opponent a chance to equalize on the goal line, shuffling the ball before Dan Burn drove it into the roof of his net.
From there, it seemed to be all Spurs and before the introduction of Jacob Murphy helped Newcastle regain the lead. The midfielder went down the pitch with incredible speed, playing the ball well when Isak put it in the net to make it 2-1.
The Magpies managed to hold on to a 2-1 lead, going into the break without losing a single game this season.
GK: Nick Pope – 4/10 – He made some excellent saves as Spurs camped outside the Newcastle goal but were repeatedly caught out with his bad foot. Newcastle cannot play at the back with Pope between the sticks. He made a big mistake when trying to shuffle the ball, allowing Spurs to score.
RB: Tino Livramento – 6/10 – Looked healthy in both defense and attack for the Magpies. It improved a lot as the game progressed.
CB: Emil Krafth – 5/10 – He had a solid shot in the corner, but it looked sluggish and weak in defense. Kraft was fortunate to face a team like the Spurs without a point guard.
CB: Dan Burn – 5/10 – Burn was the better of the two full backs and actually provided the pace against Spurs’ attacking players. He did however get the blame for Spurs’ equalizer after curling the ball into the net.
LB: Lloyd Kelly – 7/10 – Kelly looked strong and smart on the left side of the pitch. He provided a good cross for Barnes’ goal and provided some wonderful passes throughout.
CM: Sean Longstaff – 5/10 – Longstaff was unfaithful to the Magpies. He was often very slow and inaccurate when trying to play for his teammates. Bad on the ball and lost possession too many times.
CM: Bruno Guimaraes – 5/10 – It seemed to have little impact on the game, especially at the beginning.
CM: Joelinton – 7/10 – Joelinton made some stupid decisions and got a wasteful yellow card, but worked hard to close a few areas of the pitch. His efforts in the second half were much better, making some amazing passes.
RW: Harvey Barnes – 8/10 – A stunning goal from Barnes, who deserved a chance to score after firing some hard shots from the edge of the box. He was impressed with the strong machine that rocked Spurs and allowed the striker to play in the middle.
CF: Alexander Isak – 6/10 – Isak had a strong chance at the start but hit the woodwork. His efforts since then have continued to weaken. Strong pace from the front but wasted the opportunity to find Barnes and make it 2-0.
LW: Anthony Gordon – 6/10 – Gordon did well around the field but was unable to attack. An injection of pace is needed to bring excitement to Newcastle’s attack.
What you are holding
SUB: Jacob Murphy (61′ for Barnes) – 7/10
SUB: Sandro Tonali (68′ for Longstaff) – 6/10
SUB: Lewis Hall (68′ for Kelly) – 6/10
SUB: Miguel Almiron (94′ for Gordon) – N/A
Subs not used: Martin Dubravka, Alex Murphy, Kieran Trippier, Matt Targett, William Osula.
The manager
Eddie Howe – 6/10 – He was able to secure the win and picked well early on Barnes.
GK: Guglielmo Vicario – 5/10 – He made some good saves but also struggled with his feet. The goalkeeper looked nervous against Newcastle, playing loose when faced with any attack.
RB: Pedro Porro – 5/10 – He struggled to defend strongly but blasted balls up the pitch with great power. He seemed more focused on trying to score goals than doing his job in defense.
CB: Cristian Romero – 6/10 – Romero had the first goal flagged for offside but continued to work hard on the pitch. At times he struggled to stay with his man, but he did well to combine different areas of the field.
CB: Radu Dragusin – 7/10 – A wonderful strike from Dragusin to deny Newcastle a second goal. The centre-back looked fit and strong.
LB: Destiny Udogie – 4/10 – Gave away a cheap free kick which eventually led to Newcastle’s first goal. Poor defense from a 21-year-old who was often caught out of position.
CM: Pape Sarr – 6/10 – Sarr showed his ability to shoot from distance against Newcastle and was a big threat to Pope in goal.
CM: Yves Bissouma – 5/10 – Received a yellow card for a hard tackle but was quiet against the Magpies.
CM: James Maddison – 5/10 – When Maddison began to play with more precision, Spurs looked stronger. However, he was thrown to the ground when his place was removed.
RW: Dejan Kulusevski – 5/10 – Kulusevski seemed to feel the pressure to play when attacking and let that pressure mount. His comfortable position clearly backfires.
CF: Son Heung-min – 6/10 – Son is always a joy to watch, working hard in all areas of the pitch to drive Spurs forward. He was unlucky not to score, but he looked strong regardless.
LW: Wilson Odobert – 4/10 – Odobert struggled to get into the game and had no real impact. If he wants to improve, he must look to pass to his teammates to create goals.
What you are holding
SUB: Brennan Johnson (46′ for Sarr) – 7/10
SUB: Lucas Bergvall (82′ for Maddison) – 5/10
SUB: Rodrigo Bentancur (82′ for Bissouma) – 5/10
Subs used: Fraser Forster, Archie Gray, Ben Davies, Djed Spence, Alfie Devine.
The manager
Ange Postecoglou – 5/10 – He replaced Johnson but failed to play the right players in attack and defense. The Spurs backline needs a fix.
Man of the Match: Harvey Barnes (Newcastle)
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