Newcastle 2-0 Huddersfield: Almiron shines in huge win at St James' Park

by Olly Hawkins · Published 23 February 2019, 17:36

Another monumental moment in our season today, with us making it three home league wins on the spin at St James' Park - and what a debut it was from Miguel Almiron!

An early Huddersfield red card just 20 minutes in may have turned the tide and given us a good 70 minutes to break down a toothless Huddersfield side, but that can't take away from how convincing we were today in all areas.

It's a win that moves us 4 points clear of the relegation zone and yet another performance that suggests we will have more than enough to stay up this season, with several players impressing all over the pitch.

Where to start with Almiron. He may not have scored or assisted, but he was absolutely everywhere. He created more chances than any other player has for us this season, his decision making was impressive, his movement outstanding and his final ball bang on more often than not. There's few players who have both guile and pace, but he looks to have both in abundance - with his home debut performance fully justifying the brilliant display set up in the Gallowgate by Wor Flags.

Elsewhere, Longstaff was absolutely outstanding once again and probably our man of the match...once again! He made it look easy at times, barely put a foot wrong and continues to play with a maturity and class beyond his years.

Lejeune was impressive from the back - spraying balls left, right and centre, Rondon was a handful and thoroughly deserved his goal, Perez thrived in an attack that looked far more fluid with Almiron in it, Ritchie was a menace down our left and Dubravka was solid as a rock - dealing with crosses a weak-minded goalkeeper wouldn't have even come for after two big mistakes.

Here’s how the table looks after today's result (taken before Leicester vs Palace at 5.30pm):

Elsewhere, Cardiff and Fulham both lost on Friday night as you may have seen, but Burnley managed a shock win over Spurs, with Southampton facing a trip to Arsenal tomorrow.

Next up we have another big home game in the shape of Burnley - a match that could see us pull clear of the bottom three if we can come out on top again.

Here's our next 5 fixtures: