Newcastle United vs. Norwich City: Winners and Losers from Premier League Game
Newcastle United put Norwich City to the sword on Sunday, recording a remarkable 6-2 victory to give their season a timely and much-needed boost.
A frantic first half saw the two sides exchange five goals, with Georginio Wijnaldum netting two, Dieumerci Mbokani turning home reflexively and Robbie Brady smashing the post from 30 yards some of the highlights.
In the second period the Magpies took over, with Wijnaldum netting two more and Aleksandar Mitrovic grabbing his first in front of the St James' Park crowd. As good as the hosts were, the visitors crumbled defensively and allowed themselves to be punished.
On whether this was the sort of result Newcastle direly needed, four-goal hero Wijnaldum told Sky Sports' live broadcast: "Yes, of course we needed it. We've had a few games where we've played good, especially in the first half, but at the end of the game we don’t have the points. We needed this."
Here, B/R picks its winners and losers from the game. No prizes for guessing who the big winner is.
The Big Winner: Georginio Wijnaldum
1 of 5
Georginio Wijnaldum's performance on Sunday was...borderline heroic. He became the first Newcastle player to score four in a game since the halcyon days of Alan Shearer, bringing his trademark attacking style to St James' Park once again and mightily impressing in front of goal.
He netted two first-half strikes and helped the Magpies into a commanding early position. A thumping effort opened the scoring, and then a good header following an impeccably timed run beat goalkeeper John Ruddy a second time. In the second half he cleared a goal-bound effort off the line before striking twice more, sealing the victory.
His reputation as an exciting, dynamic, goalscoring midfielder was well-forged with both PSV Eindhoven and the Netherlands' national setup, and he’s brought those talents to the north-east. To survive the relegation scrap Newcastle will need goals from midfield, and Wijnaldum is just getting warmed up.
It was a genuine 10/10 performance.
Loser: Norwich’s 'Defending'
2 of 5
It wasn’t a happy trip up north for Norwich City, and the problems can be pinpointed to the back line. Sebastian Bassong and Co. struggled mightily in transitions, gave up a lot of room to play in, struggled to build from the back and crucially put in a series of feeble attempted tackles when their opponents were moving into dangerous areas.
Manager Alex Neil sacrificed some solidity in the second half with the score at 3-2; chasing an equaliser, he removed Alex Tettey (holding midfielder) and replaced him with Wes Hoolahan (No. 10). This only made things worse, with space even more readily available, but even with a shield of two men in place, Norwich conceded three.
Martin Olsson impressed mightily moving forward from left-back, but defensively he was just as poor as the others.
Winner: Moussa Sissoko
3 of 5
“The source of all Newcastle’s attacks in the first period—the Frenchman really looked like the Champions League player he thinks he is,” wrote What Culture’s Ross Tweddell. Moussa Sissoko’s contributions in the final third really were sublime to watch at times.
His defensive negligence can be glossed over thanks to the overwhelming weight he added to the attack, gliding across the turf on the counter-attack, setting up three goals in the 6-2 victory. His slaloming run for the first and his pinpoint pass for the fifth were particularly pleasing on the eye.
Newcastle need this iteration of Sissoko more often; he doesn’t put 100 percent in every week, and the club suffer as a result. On his day, he can destroy any one player and impact the result.
Loser: Daryl Janmaat
4 of 5
The level of defense on show across the board on Sunday was pretty woeful, but Daryl Janmaat’s contributions were particularly alarming—especially in the first half.
He played a major part—for all the wrong reasons—in both of Norwich City’s first-half goals as he struggled to track runners and close off space on his side. He wasn’t solely at fault—both Moussa Sissoko and Georginio Wijnaldum could have done a lot more to help—but he left a lot to be desired.
He also gambled by giving Jonny Howson’s shirt a little tug in the box as a corner was swung in, dodging a reasonable penalty shout. He garnered some favour by crossing for Wijnaldum's third goal, but it doesn't excuse a very ropey showing.
Janmaat's been good this season—make no mistake—but this was a bad day at the office.
Winner: Steve McClaren
5 of 5
Steve McClaren ended a dismal run of eight games without a league victory as Newcastle United boss on Sunday, earning his first three-point haul for the club in dramatic style.
The Magpies put in a scintillating attacking performance, unlocking stunning showings from Moussa Sissoko, Ayoze Perez and Georginio Wijnaldum and pleasing the crowd with goal after goal after goal.
It relieves some of the pressure mounting on McClaren’s shoulders and gives him a little room to breathe. He made good summer signings, and the style of play is improving. And this is the sort of scoreline that vindicates the changes he is trying to make.
