Newcastle vs. Tottenham: Winners and Losers from Premier League Game
Tottenham eased to a 3-1 win over Newcastle on Sunday as they kept themselves in the Champions League qualification while pushing their opponents closer towards the scrap for survival.
Nacer Chadli's 20-yard strike put the visitors in front at a subdued St James' Park before Jack Colback's clinical finish just seconds after half-time briefly put John Carver's men back on level terms. The home side could not capitalise on that moment, however, and Mauricio Pochettino's side would eventually make their superiority show.
Christian Eriksen scored direct from an inswinging free-kick to restore Spurs' advantage before Harry Kane finished off a sweeping counter-attacking move in the first minute of added time to complete the final 3-1 scoreline.
The result means Spurs remain seven points behind Manchester City in the race for fourth, while Newcastle are just seven points above the relegation zone. With games against Leicester City and Queens Park Rangers still to come, that is far from the advantage it might sound like.
Click on for some winners and losers from the Premier League game.
Winner: Harry Kane
1 of 5
After seeing Sergio Aguero move ahead of him in the Premier League goalscoring charts earlier in the day, Harry Kane grabbed a goal to pull back level with the Argentine in pursuit of the league's Golden Boot.
Aside from Spurs' continuing aims for the season—and fourth must remain the target, however difficult that might be—individual awards are on the agenda, and Kane would surely love to cap off his breakthrough season with a top goalscorer award to go alongside what looks certain to be at least one PFA award (having been nominated for both the Players' Player and Young Player of the Year awards).
Kane had a generally quiet game by the standards he has set this season, seeing Tim Krul somehow claw away one point-blank shot that seemed destined to hit the back of the net. Beyond that, however, he struggled for clear-cut chances—at least until Newcastle cut loose in the closing minutes and left huge stages at the back.
When they did that, the England international exploited it clinically. Erik Lamela won the ball and played Kane in behind the defence. Kane still had to beat Krul, but he did so emphatically, wrapping up victory with the class of a prolific forward.
It was also Kane's 30th goal of the season—becoming the first player since Gary Lineker to manage that for the club. The 21-year-old is attaining new records every time he steps out on the pitch.
"I'm very proud but there are five games left and, hopefully, I'll get a few more goals," Kane told Sky Sports afterwards. "We deserved it today. We played well. We've had some disappointing performances in the last couple of weeks and we wanted to put that right. I had a couple of chances and the goalkeeper made some good saves but I'm delighted to get back on the scoresheet."
Loser: John Carver (and Mike Ashley)
2 of 5
It was another difficult afternoon for John Carver, on whom the pressure is quickly beginning to grow. Many of the problems at the club do not begin or end with the club's current manager—in some ways he is fighting an uphill battle not of his making—but he increasingly looks powerless to react to events on the pitch, as Newcastle are slowly dragged towards a relegation scrap they should never have played a part in.
On an important afternoon for the club, when a strong performance would have been the perfect response to protests inside the ground and a boycott outside it, Carver's Newcastle team submitted a weak, often lifeless performance that did nothing to improve the general mood.
There were occasional flashes of life, and admittedly the players did do their best to push to find an equaliser in the closing minutes, but overall there was nothing there that made neutrals think there was a realistic chance the Magpies would claim a result.
Now just seven points above the relegation zone, Newcastle still need at least three more points if they are to be confident of avoiding the drop. What is more, they still have to play both Leicester City and QPR—games that, should they lose, would quickly close the gap to the drop zone to almost nothing.
Those are massive games on the horizon, but there has been little from Carver and his team to suggest they are prepared for those crunch fixtures. Newcastle owner Mike Ashley must be seriously wondering if he made the right choice when picking Alan Pardew's replacement, with Carver the initially cost-effective solution who could end up costing the club dearly if it ends up slipping into an unlikely relegation.
In a way the manager's situation sums up the general attitude towards Ashley, the gripes the fans have with his running of the club. Ashley always looks to save money where possible—but how often do his money-saving moves end up costing the club far more in the long run?
Afterwards, Carver told Sky Sports (via Sporting Life):
"I thought everyone was a bit tentative and nervous at the start of the game. The one thing I will say, these guys will keep pushing, keep trying—and sometimes they just might not be good enough.
It's my job now to find a solution, to find a way of playing where we can maybe get two strikers on the pitch—because the only way you can win games is by scoring goals.
"
Winner: Christian Eriksen
3 of 5
Christian Eriksen became the first Danish player to score 10 goals in a Premier League season (who else cannot believe Nicklas Bendtner never managed it?!) as his free-kick somehow evaded everyone on the way past Tim Krul.
It was the decisive moment of the match, the midfield creator once again proving decisive as Spurs picked up another difficult, important three points.
Spurs appeared to be affected by the unusual atmosphere at St James' Park, with many fans boycotting the game and those inside the ground expressing dissatisfaction with the way Ashley is running the club. Newcastle consequently struggled for rhythm, and Spurs seemed to be dragged down with them, with Eriksen one of the few players occasionally dragging the fray above the mundane.
There was some speculation that Eriksen's free-kick had taken a touch off Nabil Bentaleb before finding the net, but the Dane insisted to Sky Sports that was not the case. Kane may be the darling of Spurs right now—and deservedly so—but it will be a long time before someone supplants Eriksen as the team's most important creator.
Winner: Ayoze Perez
4 of 5
On a disappointing, dispiriting afternoon for Newcastle, young forward Ayoze Perez was perhaps the one shining light. With very little support, the Spaniard was a persistent threat to Spurs' physical back line, flummoxing bigger, more powerful defenders time and time again with his clever touches and perceptive movement.
Perez's efforts were to go without reward, but it was nevertheless a commendable display—one that will have caught the eye of plenty of clubs, managers and scouts impressed by his ability to cause so much danger from such an isolated position on the pitch.
After the game, Newcastle manager John Carver suggested to reporters he would be looking to shift to a two-striker system over the remaining weeks of the season. Perez is sure to be one of those players, but he could certainly do with a bit of support.
With the right player alongside him, Perez could yet be the key player for Newcastle as they look to accumulate the handful of points they probably need to secure Premier League survival.
Loser: Tim Krul
5 of 5
When the time comes to rewatch and review this match, Tim Krul will probably acknowledge that he could have done better for at least two of Spurs' three goals.
The Dutch goalkeeper will be disappointed that Nacer Chadli managed to beat him from 20 yards out with such a comparatively tame shot (although he may have been unsighted), while he will wince when watching how Christian Eriksen's inswinging free-kick managed to elude him along with every other player.
There were mitigating circumstances to both goals, but none that completely absolves Krul from blame.
The goalkeeper did go some way to making amends with some other good saves over the course of the 90 minutes, but ultimately those two missed opportunities ended up costing Newcastle dearly. The 10 outfield players hardly did enough to earn Newcastle the win, but perhaps in different circumstances the one goalkeeper could have better helped them escape with a draw.
