Newcastle 2-1 Man City: A night to remember as the champions are out-thought & out-fought
What an incredible night at St James' Park.
Only we could have a rotten home record, losing to nil to the likes of Brighton, West Ham, Watford and Leicester, yet go and beat the champions after going 1-0 down within 30 seconds!
Pep and Man City may not be able to be out-bought, but tonight they were out-thought and out-fought, with both Benitez and the players getting it absolutely spot on.
It's a day that summed up the black and white nature of Newcastle United. We woke up to damning quotes from Rafa, with him refusing to rule out him walking BEFORE the end of the season, yet between 5pm and 10pm we've agreed a deal to sign top target Miguel Almiron for a club record fee and beaten Man City. Incredible!
I feared an absolute mauling when Aguero gave City a 1-0 lead after 24 seconds, but we were absolutely brilliant in the 94 minutes that followed.
We limited them to few chances, got in their faces, defended superbly, competed ferociously in midfield and made the most of just about every scrap we were given up top - with Rondon putting in yet another invaluable display up top.
EVERY player did their bit, with them all deserving huge credit for their efforts and level of performance here, but Sean Longstaff was phenomenal - especially when you consider he was up against a £115m midfield. What a moment tonight must have been for him.
The scenes inside St James' Park at the full time whistle were electric. A rare big win in a season filled with disappointment and a victory that now takes us 5 clear of Cardiff (18th), 7 clear of Fulham (19th) and 13 points clear of Huddersfield (20th).
Here’s how the table looks after today’s results:
Fulham were 0-2 down at home to Brighton but turned it around to win 4-2, but on the flip side, Burnley were 0-2 up at Man Utd with a few minutes to go - and they only got a point. Cardiff also lost at Arsenal and Huddersfield were beaten 1-0 by Everton, but I couldn't care what happened elsewhere on a night like this!
Next up we’ll face a trip to Spurs on Saturday, with four far 'winnable' fixtures to come after, giving us a huge chance to kick on:
- Tottenham (A)
- Wolves (A)
- Huddersfield (H)
- Burnley (H)
- West Ham (A)
Just like the win over Man Utd around this time last year, THIS feels like the moment that could turn our struggling season on its head.
HWTL!
