Newcastle United 1-0 Fulham (Isak 89′ | Mitrovic missed pen 69′)
ST JAMES’ PARK — Long before the chaos that was to engulf St James’ Park on this manic Sunday afternoon, Newcastle United fans unfurled a banner over the Leazes End that depicted Eddie Howe, fists clenched and with a slightly wild look in his eye, alongside his response to Mikel Arteta’s recent moan about his team.
“We’re not here to be popular, we’re here to compete,” the flag’s message read. They certainly did that against an impressively resolute Fulham side, emerging from the bedlam of a tumultuous second half with top four claims strengthened and a twinkle in their collective eye.
For the record their match winner was £60m striker Alexander Isak, who stepped off the bench to settle an absorbing, edgy encounter with a late close range header. But the assist was provided by Newcastle’s increasingly slick use of the dark arts to bend tight games in their favour.
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How Mitrovic's fluffed penalty 'gave Newcastle a lift' and why Marco Silva was enraged15 January, 2023Ruffling the feathers of the teams sat on the Premier League’s top four perch is something Newcastle and their public have embraced this season. From getting up Jurgen Klopp’s nose in August to enraging Arteta in north London, Newcastle are proving adept at the sort of gamesmanship that is an underappreciated part of their emergence as a genuine threat to England’s elite.
They are not third in the table by accident. A fifth consecutive clean sheet is testament to the brilliance of Sven Botman and Nick Pope, two summer additions who arrived for less than Chelsea paid Brighton for Marc Cucurella. Nobody seems to have found an answer to the riddle Newcastle’s back four pose: namely that there are few spaces in the final third for opposition strikers to occupy.
Fulham thought they had cracked the code when they won a penalty, via VAR, for Kieran Trippier’s stray boot bringing down the lively Bobby Decordova-Reid. There were 69 minutes on the clock and it felt like a big moment in the game and these two clubs’ respective seasons.
Here’s where Newcastle’s increasing mastery of the other side of the game came into play. Aleksandar Mitrovic’s misfortune might have been self inflicted but how much was he put off by Pope’s attempts to unsettle him in the run up? Referee Rob Jones brandished a yellow card for the England keeper’s time wasting but it was a punishment worth swallowing when Mitrovic subsquently made a mess of the penalty.
More eagle-eyed observers noticed Callum Wilson subtly digging a boot into the penalty spot before Mitrovic began his run up. It might not have prompted the slip that changed the game but it was further proof that Newcastle are prepared to go to any length to win this season.
CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 15, 2023
Aleksandar Mitrović slips as he takes the penalty and the goal has been disallowed as he touched the ball twice!pic.twitter.com/kh7gOGSI6t
Earlier in the game, during a break in play, Joelinton had sidled over the Fulham bench to try and eavesdrop on Marco Silva’s instructions to his team, only to be ushered away.
The Brazilian was one of the game’s better performers, picked by Howe despite being charged with drink driving on Thursday. “I didn’t under-estimate what Joe did, but there’s a whole host of things to consider around it and I felt this was the right call at that moment,” Howe said of the “detailed discussions” which preceded that call.
Newcastle did not emerge fully unscathed. Creative talisman Bruno Guimaraes departed the pitch in tears at half-time after playing for almost half an hour in considerable pain after rolling his ankle when brushing off a challenge from Fulham’s combative defender Tete.
His obvious distress was a concern for a team who rely on him to set the tone. He departed on crutches and with his right foot in a protective boot and Howe admitted his distress was “not a good sign” ahead of a scan today.
Any serious injury will surely prompt Newcastle’s owners into a rethink on their thus-far cautious January transfer window strategy, given how well placed they are to capitalise on a fine start to the season and make what would be a transformative leap into Europe’s elite.
“We are light on midfielders, of that there is no doubt,” Howe said. If his scan confirms the worst, it will increase the urgency of Newcastle’s desire to find a midfielder who can impact games in a second half of the season brimming with potential.
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