The Good, The Bad, and The Average #40: NUFC player ratings vs. Man Utd (h) [PL32]

An Eddie Howe-less Newcastle United made predictably easy work of Manchester United at St James' Park on Sunday evening, running out 4-1 winners against Ruben Amorim's collection of wasters.

A ruthless brace from Harvey Barnes, a superb volley from Sandro Tonali, and a calm finish from Bruno Guimarães did the damage, with Alejandro Garnacho's counter-attack goal the only blot on our copybook.

The black and whites were the better team from the first whistle to the last and probably could have won by a larger margin, though another plus three in the goal difference column will do us no harm at all.

We now sit fourth in the table with a game in hand on all of those around us and are the form side in the division alongside upcoming opponents and rivals for a Champions League place, Aston Villa (and Wolves).

Here's how we rated everyone involved in another splendid day out at Gallowgate, with a three-way battle for Man of the Match between Barnes, Tonali, and the outstanding Tino Livramento.

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Good

In a three-way battle for the Man of the Match award, we're keeping it simple and plumping for two-goal hero Harvey Barnes. He was so sharp for the second goal when racing in to tap home from Murphy's cut-back, but the third was all of his making. He pressured Noussair Mazraoui into the error, raced forward and ignored Alexander Isak's pleas for the ball, before smashing it into the top corner. Beautiful stuff.

Sandro Tonali set the whole thing in motion with a wonderful opener after super work from Alexander Isak and is beginning to have an N'Golo Kanté-esque effect on this team. The speed at which he covers for teammates is incredible, and he was much more secure in possession than he has been at times this season. He must be a nightmare to play against in this sort of form and there's still more to come from him yet.

We're going to say it, Tino Livramento is the best left-back in the Premier League at the moment, which means we've got the two best left-backs in the division on our books. Alan Pardew would be in his element. Seriously, though, his work for the second goal was outstanding and while he was beaten by Diogo Dalot for Man Utd's goal, he was otherwise imperious in everything he did. What a signing he's been.

Bruno Guimarães and Joelinton were never far from the action and it was lovely to see them linking up to get us the fourth goal. Neither had their best games in our colours but they make it so difficult for opponents with their tenacity, while their passion for the cause can never be doubted. Joelinton only has to navigate one more game without being booked to avoid a suspension, which is fantastic work from the big man.

Ahead of those two, Jacob Murphy and Alexander Isak had productive afternoons without being at their penetrating best. Isak's assist for Tonali's opener is one of the finest we've seen at St James', while Murphy added yet another to his tally with great positioning and composure to set up Barnes for our second. He was rather frustrating otherwise, unfortunately, while Isak could've had a couple of goals if not ignored by his teammates!

At the other end of the pitch, Kieran Trippier is most definitely back to 7/8 out of ten territory every week after that sticky patch last season and was splendid again here, while Dan Burn seems to be obsessed with heading everything in his vicinity since that Wembley goal. It did potentially rob Barnes of a hat-trick, unfortunately, but otherwise, the big fella won a monstrous 10/10 duels!

Nick Pope made a couple of important saves but frustrated again with his kicking, though we know he gets selected for his shot-stopping ability above all else. We're probably being generous by putting him in the 'good' column, but he didn't do too much wrong and only conceded once.

Finally, a word of best wishes for Eddie Howe, who we're sure was still plenty involved in the build-up to the game despite being hospitalised on Friday after being ill all week. In his stead, Jason Tindall did a fine job in the dugout and was ably supported by Graeme Jones, though it was weird not seeing Eddie on the touchline. Here's hoping he's back in the thick of it on Wednesday and feeling miles better!

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Bad

Isn't it wonderful to see how far Manchester United have fallen? We had a strong feeling this would be a routine home win ahead of the game and so it proved, with the Red Devils not relishing the trip here in between two massive games with Lyon. Bruno Fernandes stood out as their best player, as he always does, but the rest of them looked competent at best and some were downright embarrassing at times.

Chris Kavanagh is proper naff, isn't he? We're not sure how an official from Greater Manchester gets to referee games involving either of the Manchester sides, but here he was. While his showing was an improvement on the 2/10 we gave him for the Fulham home defeat, he seemed allergic to booking the visitors for persistent offences. How Patrick Dorgu evaded a yellow card will forever puzzle us.

How much longer are we going to persist with Callum Wilson as our bench option for Isak? We've never been great fans of the number nine, but he's been atrocious this season. He was on the pitch for 17 minutes and failed to contest a duel or get a touch of the ball. Any one of us could have done a better job.

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Average

Fabian Schär didn't have a brilliant day and seemed to struggle against both Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Højlund when the ball was on the deck. Neither are the greatest strikers in the world, so we'd have expected more from our Swiss Adonis than what we got, which was just 1/8 ground duel wins.

Emil Krafth and Anthony Gordon joined the fray in the 78th minute with the game deader than a dead thing from Dead Land and did fine, Gordon looking especially sharp after his extended absence. Lewis Miley and Sean Longstaff got far less time on the pitch but didn't do much wrong either.

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Breakdown

The vast majority of those in the home ranks had good games and nobody played poorly.

The XI

Nick Pope – 7

Kieran Trippier – 8 (off 78')

Fabian Schär – 6

Dan Burn – 7

Tino Livramento – 9

Bruno Guimarães – 8 (off 85')

Sandro Tonali – 9

Joelinton – 7 (off 85')

Jacob Murphy – 7 (off 78')

Alexander Isak – 7 (off 78')

Harvey Barnes – 9 ⭐️

The Subs

Emil Krafth – 6 (on 78')

Callum Wilson – 5 (on 78')

Anthony Gordon – 6 (on 78')

Lewis Miley – 6 (on 85')

Sean Longstaff – 6 (on 85')

The Gaffer

Eddie Howe (Jason Tindall) – 9

The Opposition

Manchester United – 3

The Ref

Chris Kavanagh – 5

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Next

It's St James' again on Wednesday night for the visit of Crystal Palace. This is our 'game in hand' and it's a 7.30 p.m. kick-off that'll again be shown live on Sky.

Should we take another three points, we'll be sitting in third place, five points clear of Chelsea and Aston Villa by the time the 33rd round of fixtures kicks off.

Howay the lads!