Newcastle United made it back to back away wins after a stirring 3-1 FA Cup win over Aston Villa
Newcastle United's Lewis Hall (left) and Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers battle for the ball
Newcastle United's Lewis Hall and Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers battle for the ball (Image: PA)
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Newcastle United booked their place in the fifth round of the FA Cup with an impressive second-half display against Aston Villa. Trailing to a goal from Tammy Abraham, which should have been ruled out for offside, the game changed when Villa keeper Marco Bizot was sent off on the stroke of half-time.
Eddie Howe's side initially struggled to break down 10-man Villa, but once Sandro Tonali levelled with a deflected shot, they took control of the game.
The Italian made it 2-1 with a delightful drive, before Nick Woltemade clinched the win in the dying stages as Villa faded.
It meant back-to back wins following the victory over Spurs last week - both away from home - and sets Newcastle up nicely for their Champions League play-off against Qarabag this week. Here are five things we learned.
Referee shocker
After the VAR complaints following Joe Willock's disallowed goal at Spurs last week - I admit I was calling for change - how we missed the technology at Villa Park.
Let's start with the two big incidents. Villa's opener was clearly offside - the linesman even had the 18-yard box as a guide - and Lucas Digne's handball was well inside the box. Not even close to being outside, which is what referee Chris Kavanagh decided. Again, where was the linesman to help?
Then there was a dangerous tackle by Digne which could well have been a red card, and two big penalty calls for Newcastle in the first half. At leas they got Bizot's red card right. Perhaps we all, myself included, should take a breath next time we berate the technology.
Extra-time avoided
If there was one thing Newcastle didn't want at Villa Park, it was extra-time. With a long journey to Azerbaijan to come, and legs already weary from the recent schedule, United simply did not need another 30 minutes.
So when Tonali levelled, it was imperative they went on to win. It was at this stage that the really turned the screw, with Villa visibly tiring, although it took a sublime effort from the Italian to put Newcastle ahead.
Then they defended doggedly in the face of late resistance, before Woltemade put the icing on his own birthday cake. Now for Baku.
World Cup spot nailed down
With every passing week, Lewis Hall appears to cement his place the England World Cup side with another top-class performance. If he's not Thomas Tuchel's first choice come the summer then something must have gone seriously wrong.
It feels as though no one gets past the 21-year-old, while going forward he is a constant threat. He was again superb at Villa Park, keeping the danger to a minimum and always offering an attacking option.
There's no one else even close to him in contention, and surely he joins the full England squad at the end of March.
Newcastle's priority clear
Last year's Carabao Cup win may have done the United hierarchy a huge favour. The FA Cup remains Newcastle's most likely path to silverware this season, but the riches of the Champions League are incomparable.
The starting XI at Villa Park clearly had one eye on Wednesday night's play-off against Qarabag, with Anthony Gordon, Nick Pope, Anthony Elanga and Joe Willock rested. Previously that may have caused some anger among fans, but having broken the trophy duck last season, it's slightly more palatable.
Attacking experiment misses
Starting Will Osula and Nick Woltemade together looked a interesting prospect on paper, but in reality, the pair didn't gel. Osula needed to make more forward runs to be effective, and while his closing down in the high press was impressive, he was no threat.
Woltemade, while involved and tidy on the ball, was too far away from Osula to form any sort of partnership. The pair needed to operate much closer togetgher to be effective, and things changed when Anthony Gordon came on in the second half.
If this is to succeed when Wissa is back, it's going to need more work on the training ground.
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