Newcastle United picked up a crucial 2-1 win over Manchester City to go five points behind fourth in the Premier League.
The win came at a crucial time for Eddie Howe, easing the pressure on the English manager after a shaky run of form this season.
Both teams spurned away many chances in a fast-paced first half, with Newcastle’s neat wing play overwhelming and outnumbering Man City.
Although he missed a gilt-edged chance in the first half, Harvey Barnes was the star with both of Newcastle’s goals.
In this article, we’ll cover:
Safer Gambling Week 2025 takes place from 17 – 23rd November 2025 and is a cross-industry initiative to promote safer gambling in the UK. Its aim is to create conversations with customers, staff and the wider public about safer gambling while driving awareness of...
- How to gamble more safely
- Tools available to help people gamble safely all year round
- Sources of more advice and support
For more details, follow this link
Newcastle’s wide combinations
Newcastle normally attack teams at St James’ Park by being aggressive out of possession. They force opponents back with a roaring home crowd encouraging them.
It forces teams to play long and often causes turnovers, so, it was a surprise to see how effective Howe’s new tactics of using wide combinations was against Man City as opposed to the pressing. Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento in particular wreaked havoc, making darting runs down the pitch and combining with a central midfielder and winger to overload Man City’s full-back.
It meant there was always an extra player for Nico O’reilly or Matheus Nunes to mark, creating gaps in between them and the Man City centre-back. For instance, Hall would dart down the wing and Barnes would make a run in between Ruben Dias and Nunes in the half-space, as as short option a central midfielder would come across to continuously link-up. It’s how Newcastle created pressure and chances for Nick Woltemade in the first half.
Barnes makes up for his miss
Both teams missed a heap of chances with the half somehow finishing 0-0 in an enthralling first half. Woltemade was denied twice by the excellent Gianluigi Donnrumma. First with a one-on-one, then a bullet header after good work on the wings.
Meanwhile, Man City relied on Jeremy Doku’s new flourishing role of picking the ball up centrally to create space in close conjunction with Phil Foden. Erling Haaland also missed a chance in the six yard area before Foden squirmed a chance that should’ve rounded off a sweeping Man City move.
The biggest miss, however, was from Harvey Barnes who missed an open net from a cross drilled on the floor. It took huge character to not only shake the miss off and continue be a thorn in Man City’s side, but also score from a brilliant strike from outside of the box after a poor O’Reilly clearance.
With him and Hall in the side, Newcastle look miles better in attack. Barnes has played more than 76 minutes on only five occasions this season including the Man City match. But you feel as though with the new attackers Howe has signed, Barnes has to start more off the back of his Man City performance.
Newcastle’s influential midfield five
Newcastle have come on leaps and bounds under Howe. The key question is, whether they can kick on and be a team that consistently qualifies for Europe. Howe’s tactics at times have been described as pragmatic and of a team that likes to flirt with being close to the top of the table rather than break into the top six consistently.
At home, when Howe opts to attack teams, Newcastle fans are left wondering as to why he doesn’t aim to attack games more. Paired with Newcastle’s midfield three, Barnes and Jacob Murphy provided the Magpies with a brilliant attacking impetus whilst proving key out of possession.
For Barnes’s goal, it was notable to see five Newcastle players all pushed up against Man City’s defence. They were a threat throughout and it was because of Howe’s bravery in throwing men forward to overwhelm Man City.
Pep Guardiola’s tactics this season have had an emphasis on having three players in midfield close to each other to find gaps in the middle. That was made difficult with Newcastle’s midfield five ensuring the spaces in the centre were as compact as possible.
It was a much-needed win for Howe after three defeats from the last four. The game is perhaps another example for Howe that his team is more than capable of creating problems for any team in the league. And, instead of reverting to pragmatism, he should turn to the aggressive, gung-ho football that his team is capable of.