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Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has commented on the battle for Champions League qualification in the Premier League.

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Spurs currently sit 16th in the Premier League and can’t qualify for any European competition based on league position alone.

But they could still qualify for next season’s Champions League by winning the Europa League. Postecoglou’s side have reached the Europa League semi-final where they will face Norweigan side Bodo/Glimt over two legs.

The winner of the tie will then face either Manchester United or Athletic Club in the final.

Tottenham finished fifth in Postecoglou’s first season in charge but missed out on Champions League qualification due to the performance of Premier League clubs in European competitions. This season, English clubs have been much stronger on the whole, which has granted an extra Champions League spot based on the recently introduced UEFA coefficient rules.

The Premier League battle for Champions League qualification

Spurs’ 4-1 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday confirmed the Premier League title, while Newcastle’s 3-0 win over Ipswich Town confirmed all three relegated sides, leaving just the battle for European qualification.

Arsenal are seven points inside the Champions League places and set to qualify but only two points separate Newcastle in third and Nottingham Forest in sixth with four games left to play. The Magpies are third on 62 points, Manchester City are fourth on 61 and Chelsea are fifth on 60 points.

Forest sit sixth on 60 points but have a game in hand on the teams around them. Aston Villa still have a chance of qualifying for the Champions League but will have to close a three-point gap in their final four games.

Villa recently turned down Spurs’ request to move their Premier League match from May 18 to May 15 to give them extra time to prepare for a potential Europa League final.

Ange Postecoglou’s spiky comments about Champions League battle

While Spurs could still make it six English club’s in next season’s Champions League, Postecoglou was typically spiky when commenting on the race for Europe in the Premier League.

"I love the frenzy around finishing fifth this year,” Postecoglou said with a hint of sarcasm. “They’re all brilliant, aren’t they?

“We finished fifth last year. Why is it such a disaster that we finished fifth? That’s what you need to ask everyone and yourselves… around this time last year, I was asked to lose a game, and I was wrong for wanting to win it.

"But we finished fifth last year, yet it's not a good story. A better story is my tenure has been a disaster and it continues to be.

“I just think that the kind of hysteria that is surrounding what’s happening at the moment is all premeditated for a certain outcome."

Last season, Postecoglou claimed he was asked to lose Spurs’ match against Manchester City to help deny rivals Arsenal the Premier League title. Spurs lost the game 2-0 and City ended up winning the title ahead of Arsenal.

This season, history has somewhat repeated itself with Spurs losing 4-1 to Liverpool to mathematically deny Arsenal the title with four games left to play.

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A former Newcastle United captain has been linked with a move to Spurs as speculation over Ange Postecoglou’s future continues.

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Newcastle United will meet a familiar face when the 2025/26 Premier League season gets underway after Burnley secured promotion back into the top flight earlier this week.

Two goals from club captain Josh Brownhill helped the Clarets to a 2-1 home win against promotion rivals Sheffield United to ensure the Turf Moor club returned to the Premier League at the first attempt after suffering relegation into the Championship 12 months ago. Magpies supporters will have kept a close eye on Burnley’s progress after United were routinely linked with Clarets goalkeeper James Trafford throughout the season and their interest is believed to remain alive despite their successful push for promotion.

However, there is another reason for Newcastle fans to show a keen interest in events at Turf Moor after former Magpies club captain Scott Parker masterminded Burnley’s march back into the top flight this season. The former England midfielder was a £6.5m signing during the summer of 2005 and was named as United skipper following the retirement of Alan Shearer 12 months later. Parker made over 70 appearances during a two-year stay at St James Park before going on to spend time with Fulham, West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur.

Parker has now been linked with a return to the latter of that trio as speculation over the future of current Spurs head coach Ange Postecoglou continues to dominate the headlines. The former Celtic boss has been unable to make a major impact during his time in North London and his side currently sit in sixteenth place in the Premier League table. Recent speculation has suggested Postecoglou could leave his role with Spurs even if he is able to guide his side to success in this season’s Europa League as they prepare for a semi-final meeting with FK Bodo/Glimt.

Parker’s success with Burnley has reportedly put the former Newcastle skipper in the frame to succeed Postecoglou at Spurs - and the Clarets boss has now addressed speculation as his side prepare for one last push to pip Leeds United to the Championship title this weekend.

What has Scott Parker said about speculation linking him with Tottenham Hotspur?

When asked about the speculation, Parker told the Burnley Express: “I think at the moment I've got one single focus and that's Burnley and that's us and what we've done this year. That's exactly where my focus is. Football brings around rumours and constant things like that. But I’m absolutely fully, fully focused on what we're doing here and what we've done here and finishing off this season, really.

“It would mean everything [to win the title] and that's our aim now. We've ticked one box and that box was to get out of this division and back into the Premier League, where this club deserves to be and these players deserve to be. The next one now is can we tick another one and try and become champions of this division really? That's the sole aim now.”

The race for Champions League qualification took a fresh twist on Monday night as two former Newcastle United players stole the headlines.

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Newcastle United’s weekend went from bad to worse on Monday night when Nottingham Forest triumphed at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Nuno Espirito’s side started the day in sixth place, but ended it in third after a 2-1 win over Spurs.

The fixture schedule meant that Forest could only watch on at the weekend as Manchester City, Chelsea and Aston Villa all won to strengthen their hopes of Champions League qualification. Newcastle United, who were hammered at Villa Park on Saturday evening, were the only side in the top seven of the Premier League to not collect three points.

Although their Champions League destiny is still in their hands, the same can be said for every other side in the race. Two of the three relegation places have already been sorted, with the other potentially sealed at the weekend should Ipswich Town fail to win at St James’ Park or West Ham avoid defeat against Brighton.

The title race could also be finalised by the end of this weekend with Liverpool knowing that a win against Spurs on Sunday evening will see them lift their second ever Premier League trophy. The Reds could even be confirmed as champions as early as Wednesday night should they be defeated by Crystal Palace.

All of this means that, heading into the final few weeks of the season, all eyes are on the race for European places. And after a disappointing weekend of results, Newcastle United need to respond. Fast.

Ex-Newcastle United duo deliver hammer blow

Forest’s win on Monday night was watched on keenly from Tyneside with hopes that Ange Postecoglou’s side could do them a favour. Those hopes were dashed inside 17 minutes as Forest took a 2-0 lead.

And of course, the irony of football gods ensured that it would be goals from Chris Wood and Elliot Anderson that helped Forest to one of their most important Premier League wins of the season. The former Newcastle United duo have enjoyed a very good season at the City Ground and have played a pivotal role in helping the Tricky Trees into European contention.

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Wood’s goal in north London was his 19th of the season - 14 more than he managed during his year on Tyneside. After spending most of his time in the north east behind both Callum Wilson and Alexander Isak in the pecking order, the decision to sell the New Zealand international in 2023 was a difficult one, but one that allowed them to recoup a decent sum of money that could go towards future transfers.

Anderson, meanwhile, was sold to ensure they did not fall foul of PSR and to avoid a points deduction. The pair raised around £50m for the Magpies, but their goals and performances this season could cost their former club millions if Forest pip them to the Champions League.

Newcastle earned just-shy of £30m for their participation in the 2023/24 Champions League and, due to a revamped format, will net a sum significantly higher than that if they qualify for it again. Villa, for comparison, earned around £80m from their run to the quarter-finals this season.

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Newcastle United’s pre-season plans are starting to take shape after a Hong Kong U-turn.

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A return to the Premier League Summer Series in America had also previously been mooted before Newcastle tried to line up a trip to Hong Kong that would involve playing at the new Kai Tak Stadium this summer.

The plans failed to materialise and instead, it was confirmed that Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and AC Milan would be travelling over as part of the Hong Kong Football Festival 2025 (HKFF).

As a result, it was back to the drawing board for Newcastle. But the club’s plans are finally starting to take shape.

Newcastle United’s pre-season plans

Sky Sports revealed the Newcastle will be returning to Asia to travel to Singapore and South Korea as part of a ‘lucrative’ pre-season tour. The Magpies visited Japan last summer to play two pre-season friendly matches against Urawa Red Diamonds and Yokohama F. Marinos.

Newcastle will also have a pre-season training camp in Europe this summer with a return to Adidas HQ mooted before jetting out to Asia in late July.

Mail Online have reported that Newcastle are in talks to organise a pre-season friendly against Spurs in South Korean capital, Seoul. Tottenham captain and South Korea international Son Heung-Min’s presence would likely attract a sold-out crowd of 66,704 at the Seoul World Cup Stadium.

The report adds that there is a ‘strong possibility’ the match will receive the green light to go ahead and Newcastle will likely play another game in Korea against an ‘All-Star XI’. In addition, they will play one friendly in Singapore, with Arsenal reported to be in contention to face Eddie Howe’s side.

Newcastle and Spurs previously played in a controversial post-season friendly in Australia last May. Newcastle won the game on penalties following a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes.

NUFC looking to secure Champions League football

In addition to pre-season, Newcastle will be on their travels plenty next season with European football already confirmed. The Magpies will be competing in at least the Conference League next season after winning the Carabao Cup.

But Eddie Howe and the club’s ambitions are to achieve more and qualify for the Champions League with nine matches left to play in the Premier League. UEFA rules mean that fifth place in the Premier League is highly likely to qualify for next season’s Champions League group phase.

It would be the first time a side finishing fifth in the Premier League has qualified for the Champions League on league position alone.

Eddie Howe stresses the importance of Champions League qualification

While Newcastle’s Carabao Cup win gave fans and players memories to last a lifetime, there was actually very little financial reward for the club. In comparison, just competing in the Champions League can earn clubs substantial sums.

Newcastle pocketed in excess of £30million for competing in the Champions League in 2023-24 while Aston Villa are understood to have made over £75million after progressing to the quarter-final under the new competition format.

“There's no doubting the power of Champions League football,” Howe said. “It could be game-changing in terms of revenue and also in terms of what it means and the competition, and then of course the changes that you have to make to be ready for Champions League football.

“That changes everything, as we found last year to our cost to some degree with the extra games, so there's a lot to think about.

“But for us, qualifying for that is going to be very, very difficult. There are, as we know, 10 games, there are a lot of teams competing for those places. It's one of the tightest Premier Leagues that we've seen in recent times, very little between the teams competing fr those places, so it's going to come down to who is the most consistent.

“Of course, we want that to be us and in those 10 games, we are going to have to give everything to get there.”

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Tottenham Hotspur have made a major move in the dying embers of the winter transfer window.

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Tottenham Hotspur have confirmed the signing of Bayern Munich’s Mathys Tel on a loan deal until the end of the season. Ange Postecoglou’s side currently sit in the bottom half of the Premier League table ahead of the second-leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final meeting against Liverpool on Thursday night.

Despite their lowly position in the table and having a move for Tel seemingly hit a brick wall earlier in the window, Spurs confirmed their capture of the highly-rated 19-year-old just after the 11pm deadline had passed. Tel had been linked with Arsenal, Newcastle United and Manchester United among others this month, but will instead spend the remainder of the campaign at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Spurs having an option to make his loan into a permanent stay.

Taking to X to confirm the deal, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano wrote: ‘Mathys Tel and Tottenham, official.’

Spurs, meanwhile, confirmed the move with a club statement which read: ‘We are delighted to announce the signing of Mathys Tel on loan from Bayern Munich, subject to international clearance and work permit.

‘The France Under-21 international will join the Club on loan until the end of the 2024/25 season with an option to make the move permanent in the summer. He will wear the number 11 shirt.’

Spurs hold a 1-0 lead over Liverpool heading into their second-leg meeting later this week and know that if they avoid defeat at Anfield then they will qualify for the Carabao Cup final. Their north London rivals Arsenal face Newcastle United at St James’ Park a day earlier, meanwhile, with the Magpies holding a 2-0 advantage from their first-leg meeting.

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Newcastle United’s Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur have submitted a transfer bid for Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi.

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According to Sky Sports, Palace rejected Spurs’ bid for the England international in the final days of the transfer window. It comes after Newcastle spent the final month of the summer transfer window trying to sign Guehi.

The Magpies saw a £65million bid rejected by Palace and Spurs’ bid is understood to be less than that as Guehi enters the final 18 months of his contract at Selhurst Park. Despite the serious transfer interest, the 24-year-old is expected to remain a Palace player at least until the summer.

Chelsea have also been linked with a move for the defender and hold a significant advantage when it comes to agreeing a transfer as they have a 20% sell-on percentage having sold Guehi to Palace for £18million back in 2021. The Blues also have a clause that allows them to match any accepted offer from another club, effectively giving them first refusal to sign the defender.

While Howe was coy on Newcastle’s interest in Guehi over the summer, he has since gone on the record confirming the club’s pursuit of the defender.

“[Guehi] wasn’t the only target,” Howe said on the Up Front with Simon Jordan Podcast. “A lot goes into a summer, you never just have one target - that wouldn’t be right.

“We went into the summer with several targets and we tried to sign two or three other players but we didn’t get them.

“We ended up towards the end of the window with one target and we didn’t get him so that was it.”

Are Newcastle United still interested in Marc Guehi?

Newcastle could return for Guehi in the summer as he enters the final year of his contract at Crystal Palace. Should he not agree a new deal at Selhurst Park, Palace will be in a significantly weaker negotiating position as rejecting bids means they risk losing Guehi for nothing.

Guehi was understood to be keen on joining Newcastle but has continued to show his professionalism at Palace as captain. Given the likely cut-price deal for Guehi in the summer, Newcastle are likely to face much more competition for his signature should they return with a fresh bid ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.

Where has the Marc Guehi money gone?

Newcastle’s lack of activity in the winter transfer window has prompted many to question where the potential club record transfer fee willing to be spent to sign Guehi last summer has gone. The reality, in PSR terms, is that is was never really there and buying Guehi in the summer would have put increased pressure on the club to sell players in the winter and before the June 30 deadline in the summer.

When asked where the Guehi money was, Howe told The Gazette: “Yeah, I mean, I'm not going to sit here and explain PSR, because I don't even understand all of it. But it's not as clear as everyone will make out, there's not a pot of money there waiting to be spent, it's all about the 30th of June and making sure you comply by that date.

“Obviously, if you spend money, then you have to recoup it at a later date, so that doesn't explain anything, does it? But in my head it does.”

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Tottenham Hotspur could swoop for one reported Newcastle United transfer target this month.

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Spurs currently sit 15th in the Premier League table having lost four Premier League matches in a row - a run that includes a 2-1 reverse against Newcastle United earlier this month. Ange Postecoglou’s side have also been plagued by injuries over the last few months as they compete domestically and in Europe.

Reinforcements are desperately needed at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this month, but with just days left of the transfer window, they need to move quickly if they are to add reinforcements to Postecoglou’s squad. One player that has been mooted with a potential move to north London has been Southampton winger Tyler Dibling.

Dibling has been one of the few bright sparks of Southampton’s season to date, enjoying a very good breakthrough season at St Mary’s. The 18-year-old has netted for times for the Saints this season, including a brace during their FA Cup win over Swansea City earlier this month.

However, the teenager currently finds himself on the treatment table having injured his ankle against Manchester United. Dibling missed Southampton’s defeat against Newcastle United at the weekend but is expected to be back in action next month.

According to the Telegraph, that injury has not put Spurs off from seeking a move for Dibling this month, with reports that they have ‘held talks’ over a potential move for him. A move for Dibling, however, will not come cheap for Spurs, with Southampton reportedly valuing him at £55m.

Newcastle United have also been linked with a move for Dibling in recent times, but again will likely be put off by Southampton’s current valuation. It appears, therefore, that unless Spurs swoop this month, then Dibling will remain a Southampton player at least until summer where, barring a remarkable great escape from Ivan Juric’s side, he will leave with a plethora of Premier League interest in his services.

Dibling’s rise to prominence at Southampton may not come as a surprise to Magpies fans, however, after he shot to fame following a remarkable first-half hat-trick at St James’ Park during an Under-21’s game between the two clubs in April 2022. Dibling scored an almost identical goal three times as he picked up the ball from deep, ran at the defence before smashing the ball into the bottom corner on three separate occasions.

Speaking to the club website following that game, Dibling admitted it was a ‘buzz’ to play at the iconic stadium: “Yeah, it was good. A hat-trick in the first half, I've never done that before. The fans were good, considering there weren't that many.

“It was a real buzz, and it was nice to play in a stadium like this. All the [goals were the] same. That's what I do most, pick it up and drive, have a bang – and hopefully it goes in.

“I like to have the ball, dribble, beat a couple of people – and get my shot off. Sometimes I pass it, but I just shot there.”

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Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has given his view on a number of controversial incidents between Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United.

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Eddie Howe’s side secured a fifth consecutive Premier League win with a 2-1 victory over Spurs on Saturday. An early goal from Dominic Solanke was quickly wiped out by Anthony Gordon before Alexander Isak netted for the seventh consecutive Premier League game to put his side ahead - a goal that would ultimately secure them all three points.

However, post-match, Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou revealed his frustrations over a number of calls made against his side, namely the decision not to award them a free-kick for a handball by Joelinton in the build-up to Gordon’s opener. Lucas Bergvall was the man who kicked the ball onto the Brazilian’s hand with appeals from Spurs for handball immediately following Gordon slamming the ball past Brandon Austin.

Speaking on Sky Sports Ref Watch, Gallagher delivered his verdict on the decision to allow Newcastle’s opener to stand, saying: “It’s the law. The law is ‘has he deliberately handled the ball?’. It didn’t lead to him scoring so it goes back to ‘is it deliberate?’

“If you look, his arm is down by his side, he can’t bring it in any further. It strikes him but is it deliberate? The referee says no and the VAR says no.

“Whether they like it or not, the rule says play on.”

He continued: “I think his arm starts in an unnatural position but you can see quite clearly that he brings his arm in. The rule has changed, don’t forget, that the rule originally was has it led to a goal in the build-up. People don’t like it but that’s the rule, he wasn’t the scorer.”

Gallagher was also asked his view on whether Dan Burn should have been shown a second yellow card by Andy Madley for handball on the halfway line. A free-kick was awarded to the hosts but because it was only a yellow card offence, VAR could not get involved and change Madley’s decision.

Gallagher, meanwhile, believed the referee made the right call anyway, stating: "Halfway line, handball, free-kick [no yellow card]."

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Newcastle United will be without Bruno Guimaraes and Fabian Schar for Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup semi-final trip to Arsenal.

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The first leg tie at the Emirates Stadium (8pm kick-off) sees Newcastle return to North London fresh from beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 in the Premier League on Saturday. The Magpies have won six games in a row in all competitions but haven’t won at Arsenal since 2011.

Newcastle were without the suspended Fabian Schar for the match at Spurs and the defender remains banned against Arsenal having picked up a booking in the 3-1 Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Brentford last month. Bruno Guimaraes also picked up a booking in the match and will miss the match.

It’s a rare absence for the Brazilian, who has featured in every Newcastle match since his suspension against AFC Bournemouth in November 2023. Guimaraes has only missed seven matches since arriving at St James’ Park for £40million three years ago but Newcastle have failed to win any of them - they will be looking to end that run in the midfielder’s eighth absence.

Arsenal were interested in signing Guimaraes from Lyon before he agreed a long-term deal with Newcastle in 2022.

Following the win at Spurs, Guimaraes told NUFC TV: “It is very good for the confidence. I am a little bit sad that I will not be able to make the game but I will support the team as a Geordie now and hopefully we can get a good score because the first leg is very important for the second one.

“The confidence is higher, we are in a good moment so I am hopeful we can go there and get a win.”

Guimaraes was filmed singing ‘E I E I E I O! Up the Premier League we go’ with the Newcastle supporters following the full-time whistle at Spurs as he will now miss the following match.

Guimaraes and Schar will be back available for selection in Sunday’s FA Cup third-round clash against Bromley at St James’ Park. The Carabao Cup semi-final second leg will take place on February 5 (8pm kick-off).

Reflecting on Guimaraes and Schar’s semi-final bans, Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe said: “Bruno and Fabby are two massive players for us, very consistent performers so we're going to miss them massively but that's what the squad is for.

“It goes without saying you want your best players available for the biggest games but we just have to accept it. There's nothing we can do about it and we have to get other players ready to perform.”

Sven Botman has returned from an ACL injury after almost 10 months on the sidelines and will be in contention for the match at Arsenal despite going off with cramp in the closing stages of the win at Spurs.

Howe also admitted the quick turnaround and physically demanding festive period has taken a lot out of his players as he looks to keep energy levels high for the vital cup clash.

“That, of course, is something I am very aware of,” he said. “We went through a spell where we were very inconsistent in our performances so I made a conscious decision to try and be consistent with my team selection to give the best chance of getting consistent results.

“We’ve started to win games so I’ve been very reluctant to change things and unbalance what’s been working for us, and sometimes even within a game, I haven’t wanted to change the dynamic too much unless I feel like I absolutely have to.

“We need to assess how the players feel and we certainly need energetic players for Arsenal. It’s going to be a physical game and a very quick turnaround but it’s the same for Arsenal, if anything they’ve had a harder schedule in the last few days so let’s see how we feel.”

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Newcastle United made it five wins in a row in the Premier League with a 2-1 win at Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

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Goals from Anthony Gordon and Alexander Isak cancelled out Dominic Solanke’s early opener for Spurs as Newcastle cemented a spot in the top five to start 2025 - and here are five talking points from the game...

Botman returns

After more than nine months on the sidelines following ACL surgery, Sven Botman made his long-awaited return to first team action for Newcastle. It was a bold call from Eddie Howe to recall the Dutch defender straight back into the starting line-up.

And Newcastle got off to a shaky start with Botman beaten to the ball by Dominic Solanke who headed in Pedro Porro’s cross to give Spurs the lead inside four minutes. But Botman and his teammates quickly recovered to turn the game around.

Ultimately it was a welcome return for the 24-year-old, who made some important contributions in the match.

Reflecting on his decision to start Botman, Howe explained: “The thinking behind that is he has done the work and I wouldn’t play him unless I thought he was physically ready.

“He’s been very dedicated to his recovery, we’ve seen him put an extraordinary amount of work before he started training with us and he’s been training with us now for six weeks I think.

“He’s had three games and looked good in those games, of course he won’t be at his optimum level but that’ll come in the following months. But I thought he was physically and mentally ready to play. He was chomping at the bit to be involved again.

“It was a difficult start for him and the team when Tottenham scored but a great response. I thought he did very well today.”

Newcastle United score with their first shot on goal for the fifth successive match

Newcastle have developed a ruthless streak in front of goals when starting games with Anthony Gordon quickly drawing the away side level. For the fifth successive match, The Magpies opened the scoring with their first shot on goal.

After failing to even register a clean shot at Crystal Palace a little over a month ago, Newcastle’s attacking turnaround has been as impressive as it has been remarkable.

Sandro Tonali’s goal against Brentford, Isak’s openers against Ipswich Town and Manchester United and Anthony Gordon’s strikes against Aston Villa and now Spurs. This time was slightly different as it was an equalising goal to help Newcastle bounce back from a poor start rather than get off to a flyer as they had done in their previous games.

“I think that is the most pleasing thing from [the match],” Howe said. “How we reacted in that moment [to going behind].

“Scoring so quickly after they scored and then having the maturity and quality in our play to dominate that first-half in the way that we did is really good signs for the future, I think.”

VAR angers Tottenham

While Gordon’s goal quickly drew Newcastle level, Spurs felt it should not have stood due to a handball from Joelinton in the build-up to the goal. The players and bench protested and injured Tottenham defender Destiny Udogie even called VAR ‘a joke’ on social media following the decision.

But by the letter of the law, as Andy Madley did not blow for handball on field, VAR could not rule the goal out for handball. Joelinton also neither scored nor assisted the goal.

The Premier League Match Centre explained the decision to award the goal by stating: “The referee’s call of goal was confirmed by VAR, who checked for a potential handball by Joelinton in the build-up and deemed that his arm was by his side, in a natural position and the contact was accidental.”

Head coach Eddie Howe was open in admitting the ball hit Joelinton’s hand but he felt the officials were merely following the latest handball rules. Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou refused to reference the incident but suggested that the match was not played ‘on a fair and even playing ground’.

“Don't ask me about the [handball] decision,” Postecoglou said. “I have my opinions on it but we were outstanding today. I'm disappointed that it wasn't football that denied us getting our rewards today.

"You can talk about whatever you want. You want my opinion - if all things were equal and balanced we would have won.”

Alexander Isak equals Newcastle United record - can he go five further?

It was ultimately Newcastle who won the match thanks to Isak reacting quickly to skim in Jacob Murphy’s deflected cross into the bottom left corner of the goal. It was the seventh consecutive Premier League game Isak had found the net in, equalling a league record set by Alan Shearer in 1996.

Newcastle midfielder Joe Willock also scored in seven consecutive Premier League appearances back in 2021, though he was absent in two matches in that run. Isak still has a long way to go to break Jamie Vardy’s record of scoring in 11 successive Premier League matches set during Leicester City’s title-winning campaign back in 2015-16.

To beat that record, Isak would have to score in Newcastle’s upcoming league matches against Wolverhampton Wanderers, AFC Bournemouth, Southampton, Fulham and then away at Manchester City.

Newcastle United ‘injury’ substitutions explained

Gordon and Botman were forced off in the closing stages due to what was described by Howe as ‘legitimate injuries’ they picked up during the match. Gordon was left with a bloody nose after connecting with the shoulder of Dejan Kulusevski inside the penalty area before being withdrawn shortly after.

Botman was able to get through 90 minutes on his return before going down with cramp and limping off in stoppage time.

Explaining the ‘injury’ substitutions, Howe told The Gazette: “I don’t think it was anything more than cramp for Sven. Which was expected given the amount of time he’s been out.

“It was a great effort from him to last that long. We were unsure how long he would be able to go for, with the speed of the Premier League. But thankfully he got through the majority of the game.

“I think [Gordon] was just a cut. It was a nasty one, and he had blood all over him, so he did well to get back onto the pitch. Hopefully, it was nothing more than that though.”

Both players are expected to be available for Tuesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at Arsenal (8pm kick-off).