Newcastle failed to gain ground on their top-half rivals this weekend, lacking guile, ambition and shots at goal against a weaker side on paper.
But it’s not all doom and gloom, with a lot to look forward to including the ramping-up of transfer rumours (’tis the season!) and a festive period jam-packed with both Premier League and Carabao Cup action! As always, I’m Sam and welcome back to the Toon Review.
Two Points Lost at Palace
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Yet another toothless showing from United, as a Marc Guehi own goal was cancelled out by Daniel Muñoz’s stoppage tim equaliser. In truth, Newcastle could have quite easily left Croydon with nothing, failing to register a single shot on target over the entire match. Something has to change in the final third.
The first half was overshadowed by fears of an injury to Alexander Isak, though Howe later confirmed this not to be a muscular problem. In his place, the boss brought on not a striker but a wide player in Harvey Barnes, leaving both Callum Wilson and William Osula on the bench. Either could have provided ample goal threat, yet instead it was a struggling Anthony Gordon that would lead the line for United for much of the afternoon. Osula must be wondering what more he can do to earn a chance from Howe. Wilson did eventually enter the fray, but his only meaningful contribution was receiving a yellow card.
Elsewhere, several of Newcastle’s top-six rivals fared well, with victories for the likes of Chelsea, Man Utd, Nottingham Forest and Brentford. Aston Villa, however, found themselves on the end of a 3-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge, meaning that Newcastle and the Villains now occupy the 11th and 12th places respectively.
What Howe Said
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**On the game and result:** _“Very tough to take at the end because it was so close. I felt we had done enough at that moment to have won the game.” “We were disciplined, whole-hearted.” “Our defensive performance today gave us real heart.”_
**On Isak’s injury and his decision not to bring on Wilson early:** _“Callum has not trained a great deal with the team, so we have to be careful \[with his minutes\].” I don’t think it (isak’s injury) is a muscle problem which is good news for us. Hopefully he can recover quickly.”_
**On the set piece that led to Guehi’s own goal:** _“Really good from Jason Tindall and Kieran Taylor – they do a really good job with our set plays.”_
**On next game vs Liverpool on Wednesday:** _“We have extra motivation. Whenever you don’t quite hit the levels and the results you want it gives you extra incentives.”_
**Key Quote: _“We missed the cutting edge that we had for all of last year.”_**
The Rumour Mill
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In this section, we like to take a quick look at some of the noisiest transfer rumours relating to Newcastle United over the last few days.
**Marc Guehi** of Crystal Palace remains of strong interest, yet a January transfer would be difficult. Other centre-back targets such as **Malick Thiaw** of Milan, **Antonio Silva** of Benfica and **Edmond Tapsoba** of Bayer Leverkusen have also been watched. Middlesbrough midfielder **Hayden Hackney** has been tracked, but a January move for **Bryan Mbeumo** would be expensive and difficult to pull off **(The Athletic)**
Newcastle United are showing interest in £25m-rated Lens centre-back **Abdukodir Khusanov** ahead of the January transfer window **(The Telegraph)**
**Miguel Almiron** will be allowed to leave Newcastle in January and has interest from Saudi Arabia and America (**The Telegraph**)
Paul Mitchell sent scouts to Coventry to watch their 2-2 draw with Sheffield United as Newcastle look to plan for the January Transfer Window. **(The Chronicle)** The Mail report that it’s Coventry striker **Norman Bassette** who was the player in focus.
Newcastle are interested in Bournemouth forward **Antoine Semenyo** but are unlikely to make a January move unless other players leave **(Sky Sports)**
On this day: 2nd December
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On this day all the way back in 1950, the Magpies travelled to Old Trafford and defeated the Red Devils 2-1 in Division 1. Manchester United opened the scoring in the 39th minute through forward Brian Birch, before second-half goals from George Hannah and Tommy Walker turned the game on its head late on.
A look ahead to Wednesday and Saturday
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**Liverpool (H) – Brentford (A)**
Anything can happen when United play the big boys at home, and Howe’s side will be looking for some St James’ magic when Arne Slot’s high-flying Liverpool come to town on Wednesday night. Fresh off the back of a huge win over title rivals Manchester City, the reds now find themselves nine points clear at the summit of the Premier League table. We’ve beaten Spurs, Chelsea and Arsenal at St James’ Park this season and held Man City with a 1-1 draw, but stopping Arne Slot’s Reds is a huge task given they’ve won 15 and drawn once (Arsenal away) in their last 16 games in all competitions!
On Saturday, United will travel to the Gtech Community Stadium to face one of the league’s best home sides in Brentford. Newcastle have fared well here of late – we’ve won our last three at Brentford – but Thomas Frank has done everything he can to make the Gtech as fortress with six wins and a drawn in their seven home games so far. Make no mistake, our next two games will be very tough.
Quiz Question
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Well done to those who answered last week’s Palace-themed trivia correctly! Darren Ambrose was initially signed by Newcastle from **Ipswich Town** in 2003, before going on to enjoy a great spell at Selhurst Park later in his career.
So, with Liverpool around the corner… **for what transfer fee did Andy Carroll move from the Magpies to Anfield in 2011?**
Remember, no cheating, and I’ll see you all at the beginning of next week where we’ll check in with how United have fared in their tricky next two games. Bye for now!