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Newcastle United finished their season on a high, winning 4-2 away at Brentford to secure seventh place in the Premier League.
Harvey Barnes, Jacob Murphy, Alexander Isak and Bruno Guimaraes scored for Eddie Howe’s side as Nick Pope returned from the injury he suffered in early December.
Here, The Athletic’s Newcastle correspondents Chris Waugh and George Caulkin analyse the key talking points from the game.
European qualification not yet a done deal
Right until the end, chaos reigned. Right until the end of a season of toil and strain, of mighty highs and subterranean lows, Newcastle could not quite bring themselves to make their own lives easy.
Bigger picture, they did enough. Needing to win to secure seventh place, guaranteeing they finish above Manchester United for the first time in the Premier League, Eddie Howe’s team put four goals past Brentford in a game that had too many gear shifts for comfort.
Manchester United still have a say in a campaign that will remain alive until next weekend, with Newcastle relying on Manchester City beating their local rivals in the FA Cup final to ensure they play Conference League football next season. Before that, Howe and his squad travel to Australia for a whirlwind post-season tour.
Away from St James’ Park, Newcastle have been vulnerable, losing eleven league games and conceding 40 goals. After a straightforward first half in which they took a 3-0 lead, there were echoes of that frailty in what followed. At 3-2, nerves were kicking in.
Not for the first time, there was late drama, with Simon Hooper awarding a penalty when Lewis Hall was clipped by Bryan Mbeumo in the 75th penalty, a decision that was overturned by the VAR, much to the fury of Newcastle’s players and staff. Ultimately it didn’t matter; after the resulting free kick was saved, Guimaraes made it 4-2 and it was game over.
Guimaraes dons a bucket hat to celebrate (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
While European football is not yet assured, it would represent a fine achievement for Howe and his team, given how badly they have been stretched by injuries. It is now out of their hands, but they did their bit.
George Caulkin
Howe’s team have been brilliant in front of goal
Newcastle have had their deficiencies this season, especially defensively, but they really are some attacking team. The ‘Accidental Entertainers’ tag is a backhanded compliment, but it suits them perfectly.
For the 14th time in the top flight this season, they scored at least three goals, taking their tally to 85, a club record in the Premier League era. Across all competitions, they surpassed a century as well, scoring 102 in 51 matches.
Isak and Guimaraes celebrate together (Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
A joint-Premier League-high 20 players found the back of the net at least once in the process but it was Isak who led the way, showing prolific form. The Sweden international plundered 25 goals across all competitions — 21 in the league — and became the first player since Alan Shearer in 2003-04 to do so.
It is at the other end where they have been found wanting. Newcastle conceded 62 league goals, making them the first team to score at least 80 and ship at least 60 in a top-flight campaign with a maximum of 20 teams since 1914-15 (Blackburn Rovers and Sunderland).
Frustratingly, while Newcastle once again finished a campaign in impressive, swashbuckling style, they also became the first team in the top flight since 1963-64 to score more than 83 goals in a campaign and finish outside the top six. On that occasion, Arsenal scored 90 and finished eighth. This time, Newcastle scored 85 and came seventh.
Chris Waugh
Injury curse strikes one last time
In this, Newcastle’s season of injuries, there was one last bitter blow.
Anthony Gordon, who prides himself on not even having a relationship with the physios due to his fitness record, finally succumbed to a problem on the final day, missing out with an ankle problem that will also save him a post-season trip to Australia.
Mercifully, and belatedly, there were significant returns, too, as Howe made four changes to his starting XI.
The biggest call of all saw Pope restored as goalkeeper, with the England international making his first appearance since December 2, when he dislocated his shoulder against Manchester United. Pope instils confidence in his team-mates, making big saves that Martin Dubravka simply does not.
On this occasion, he twice thwarted Ivan Toney, once with an outstretched leg and another with a reflex stop down to his right.
Pope denies Brentford’s Toney (Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty Images)
But Joelinton’s presence in the starting line-up for the first time since January 6 also made a visible difference. Not only did he free up Guimaraes to provide two assists (and score), he powered around the pitch, winning the ball, making three tackles, an interception and eight recoveries in a manner no other Newcastle midfielder does.
Howe said before the game that he offers Newcastle another dimension and he certainly does. Of all the injuries this season, none have been more damaging than those suffered by Pope and Joelinton.
Chris Waugh
What did the manager say?
We will bring you Howe’s post-match comments as soon as we have them.
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(Top photo: Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
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Courtesy : https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5501438/2024/05/19/newcastle-premier-league-briefing/