(Football news) A dramatic 2-2 tie with West Ham United gave both teams a point from their most recent games played before the international break, while a goalless stalemate between the Eagles and Nottingham Forest was a far more low-key affair.
Almost everything that could go right for Newcastle did go right between the first two international breaks of the season; in addition to their Premier League comeback, Eddie Howe’s team defeated Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City at St. James’ Park in the EFL Cup and Champions League, respectively.
At the London Stadium, however, there was clearly a hangover from Europe as the Magpies trailed West Ham after just eight minutes thanks to a goal from Tomas Soucek. Only an Alexander Isak brace could save the game, as Mohammed Kudus, the new signing for the Hammers, pulled one back in the 89th minute.
Howe would have preferred a stress-free two weeks while Newcastle’s international crop wore their nations’ jerseys, but the Magpies are back at home after discovering Sandro Tonali was involved in illicit betting, an offence for which Nicolo Fagioli of Juventus and Nicolo Zaniolo of Aston Villa have also been charged.
The supporters of St. James’ Park are eager to learn whether Tonali will face a lengthy suspension, but Howe and company need to ignore these distractions as they work to extend their winning streak to eight games in all competitions. This is a crucial goal as Borussia Dortmund will be visiting next week.
The German powerhouses may be travelling to a stadium where Newcastle has won five straight games. Since losing to Liverpool’s 10 men at home, Howe’s team has won four straight at home and allowed just one goal in 360 minutes of play.
A fantastic moment from the center back While Joachim Andersen witnessed Palace manager Roy Hodgson maintain his impressive run of results at Old Trafford last month, there wasn’t much excitement two weeks ago because the Dane couldn’t duplicate his achievements against Nottingham Forest.
The most notable chance for either team in a dull draw came from Morgan Gibbs-White’s lob onto the post; however, it was enough to keep Palace in the top half of the standings after eight games of the 2023–24 season; for the time being, the Eagles are keeping Manchester United and Chelsea at bay in ninth place.
A shot-shy Palace, who are severely lacking in Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise, have only managed one goal in their last four Premier League games, while keeping three clean sheets during that stretch. This is after they were unable to break through the Tricky Trees’ defense the previous time out.
Although Hodgson’s team has only managed one goal in each of Palace’s four away Premier League games this season, there is reason to believe that a single goal won’t be enough at St James’ Park despite a current trend of low scoring between these two teams.
In fact, the last three meetings between Newcastle and Palace have all resulted in a goalless draw after ninety minutes. However, last November, the Magpies prevailed on penalties in an EFL Cup third-round match, and in April 2022, they defeated Palace 1-0 at St. James’ Park thanks to a goal from Miguel Almiron in the first half.
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