Report and free match highlights as Newcastle reached the 40-point mark with victory over Patrick Vieira's Crystal Palace; visitors, still reeling from their FA Cup semi-final defeat to Chelsea at the weekend, failed to deal with quick-minded approach from their hosts
Thursday 21 April 2022 08:56, UK
Miguel Almiron's wondergoal earned Newcastle a sixth straight home victory in the Premier League, courtesy of a 1-0 win over an out-of-sorts Crystal Palace.
The Magpies winger went on a mazy run down the right before curling in a stunning effort off the post, following an exquisite pass by popular St James' Park figure Bruno Guimaraes, who is in red-hot form for Eddie Howe's side.
Palace boss Patrick Vieira cut a frustrated figure for most of the match as his side were deservedly beaten after creating very little in the north east.
Wilfried Zaha missed the best of their chances in the second-half when he fired wide from inside the box but that was all that troubled Newcastle - who picked up six straight home league wins for the first time since 2004 and reached the magic 40-point mark needed to secure survival.
Before the match, Newcastle boss Howe called for a fast start at St James' Park in order to reach the 40-point milestone and that's what his side delivered.
Palace, still reeling from their FA Cup semi-final defeat to Chelsea at the weekend, failed to deal with the quick-minded Magpies players as the likes of Emil Krafth and Allan Saint-Maximin enjoyed a lot of freedom down the wings early on.
In midfield, Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes, fresh from his match-winning display against Leicester at the weekend, combined early on to release Almiron in the penalty area, but only a sturdy block from Marc Guehi denied him an early opener.
Then Newcastle striker Chris Wood enjoyed one of the most clear-cut chances of the evening as he latched onto Matt Targett's long ball to go one-on-one against Vicente Guaita. The New Zealander put an unconvincing shot wide of goal and the offside flag went up - but replays showed that VAR would have given it had it gone in.
But it wasn't long until Newcastle's early running got them the breakthrough. Guimaraes latched onto the loose ball from Krafth's throw-in to put a superb long ball onto Almiron's foot. The Paraguayan shrugged off his man to venture into the box, and found the top corner - via the post - from an impossible angle.
Vieira showed his anger at his Palace side by taking off Michael Olise for Jordan Ayew five minutes before half-time - with no injury to the England Under-21 international in sight - as his side struggled to fashion any short of opportunities. The only effort on goal in the first-half saw Odsonne Edouard pass the ball into Martin Dubravka's arms after some slack defending from Joelinton.
Palace did not improve after the break so more changes came from Vieira. Jean-Phillipe Mateta and James McArthur, who both started at Wembley on Sunday - replaced Cheikh Kouyate and the quiet Connor Gallagher, and the visitors started to show more endeavour.
And when Zaha latched onto Edouard's pass in the box, many thought that Palace found their leveller. But the Ivorian international dragged his effort past Dubravka's post and the opportunity fell away.
The only other chance for Palace came when Mateta headed over McArthur's cross but Newcastle were relatively untroubled on the night that saw them secure Premier League football for next season.
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Wednesday night marked exactly five months since Newcastle boss Howe took over at St James' Park - but after several weeks of anguish, the 44-year-old can now relax a little more and enjoy the rest of the campaign.
Howe failed to win his first three matches in charge of the club - but his side have progressed into a team that produced - according to the Magpies manager - their best performance of the campaign in the first-half against Palace.
"We were very good in the first half," he said. "Probably - with the ball and in terms of our intensity - one of our best performances. In the second half, it was difficult, Crystal Palace came back into the game but we defended very, very well.
"It seems like a long time ago and you can quickly forget where we were and where we've come from this season. We know we have a long way to go to improve ahead of us but we're delighted with the players' response to our work.
"It's a great night for the football club. You can forget very quickly where we were and how hard we've worked to get into this position now."
For Vieira's Palace, the Eagles manager admitted that Sunday's FA Cup semi-final loss to Chelsea was still on his players' minds - which explained their slow start to the match.
"We entered the game not in the best way," the Frenchman said. "We didn't play enough going forward and our centre-backs had too much possession.
"The second half was better but we didn't create enough chances. We had the possession, but we didn't put the ball in the box and make the right decision.
"Losing the semi-final of the FA Cup was a lot for us to take, we've seen it with the way we entered the game. But we have to bounce back and go back to basics and win football matches."
Analysis from Sky Sports' Sam Blitz:
Not since the Sir Bobby Robson era have Newcastle picked up six straight Premier League wins - and it's that type of football that the club's new Saudi owners were trying to move towards after years of stagnation.
Not a lot was going to be discovered tonight - given both sides had all but secured Premier League survival before the game - but now the Magpies have the top half in their sights.
Should Newcastle finish in the top-flight's top ten come the end of the season, then it's a really positive opening six months at St James' Park for the new ownership. It justifies the patient process to hire Eddie Howe, plus the early investment the club have made in the likes of Bruno Guimaraes - who has settled in quickly alongside Jonjo Shelvey and Joelinton in midfield.
Meanwhile, the excellent home form will help unite the team, its owners and the fans as they take the first steps on this new journey together. The away form is less impressive with three straight defeats and, with Liverpool and Arsenal still to visit St James' Park, improvement on the road will be next on Howe's checklist.
For Crystal Palace, Patrick Vieira demanded before the game that his players will not simply fade into May after their FA Cup semi-final loss - so he won't be happy with this display at all.
The likes of Connor Gallagher and Michael Olise did not seem up for the challenge tonight - which may have explained their premature withdrawals either side of half time. This will be a lesson learned for Vieira's young side.
Newcastle are back in action on Saturday when they travel to Norwich in the Premier League; kick-off 3pm. Crystal Palace will then take on Leeds live on Monday Night Football; kick-off 8pm.
