Five takeaways from Newcastle 2-1 Brentford - Tonali, two worries and up to fifth
Newcastle United picked a massive three points on Wednesday night with a spotty 2-1 win against Brentford.
Following a bright opening ten minutes, United faded, conceded possession and territory to the West Londoners, and needed a thunderb*****d from an acute angle by Sandro Tonali to seal the win.
Alexander Isak opened the scoring from close range in first half stoppage time, before a Bryan Mbeumo penalty levelled the scores in the 66th Minute.
Here are our five key takeaways from the game:
1. Sandro ’30%’ Tonali
Whether the Italian meant the goal or not is irrelevant (and the man himself has said it’s a 30% chance post-match), what is vital is that he took a chance by smashing it towards goal and it flew into the net as United were really struggling to break down a well drilled Brentford side.
Sandro is one of the first names on the team sheet these days and he often looks a class above some of his teammates on the pitch, but one area he could certainly improve on is his goals and assists output as the stats often don’t do him justice.
But Tonali's fortuitous goal keeps United well and truly on course for a place in next season's Champions League, a feat that if Howe achieves alongside a domestic trophy for the first time in 70 years, will have to go down as one of the best ever - especially with the squad being weakened in January.
2. Inevitable Isak and injury worries
The Swede has now scored 20+ goals in consecutive seasons for United as his price tag approaches priceless. He is fast becoming the all-round, complete striker, with Wednesday night’s tap-in comfortably sitting alongside his more difficult strikes - like the one at Wembley.
Isak is a game changer, he elevates this United side, and can turn a poor performance into a win through his sheer quality and will. Whatever happens in the summer, United will either retain one of the best in the world, bank £150m+ or sign the lad onto a new long term deal.
Sign two or three world class players to play alongside him in the summer and United aren’t far from a title tilt.
That said, we’ll have to hope this persist groin issue settles as he was forced off just after the hour mark and never really looked that comfortable. Kieran Trippier’s withdrawal was also a worry. He’s rolled back the years recently so let’s hope he’s OK.
3. A little fortunate?
Brentford will be hugely disappointed to have left St James' Park with nothing as they were largely the better side on the night. They enjoyed a better xG, hit the bar and had more corners whilst generally frustrating United’s attempted through passes and cutting off passing lanes.
Brentford had won every game on the road so far in 2025 and they looked in better nick than United did most of the game. On another night this may’ve drawn more of the crowds ire, but SJP was in a jovial mood following the cup win and the support for the lads was strong. But there’s no denying that the game was a struggle in the main.
4. Performances don’t matter
With the game coming a huge 17 days after the Wembley victory and players jetting off here, there and everywhere on international duty, a disjointed performance was not out of the question for United as the game kicked off but as Eddie Howe has said it’s imperative that the lads kick on in the final ten games of the season.
The run-in is a time for winners and points on the board, good performances are nice but are fairly meaningless; it’s all about getting the three points especially when the league is as congested as it is.
Positively, Eddie Howe’s sides tend to finish the season well and with a completely out of sorts Leicester City next, you would back the lads to make in three league wins in a row on Monday night.
5. Destiny in our own hand
United’s win moves them up to fifth (with Chelsea still play this game week) and our destiny is very much in our own hands as we have a game in hand over all of our nearest rivals.
Champions League could be imperative in holding onto some of our bluechip players, as Bobby would say, so it’s heartening to hold that destiny entirely within our own hands as the season draws to a close.
It will probably take seven or eight wins out of ten to secure a spot in Europe’s elite competition and despite the struggles, United have started in a hugely positive manner and have kept the feel good factor going after what has been an amazing two weeks celebrating the Carabao Cup win.
Keep the faith. HWTL
