Newcastle United fans are today reflecting on two points dropped away from home after a dominating performance ended in a goalless draw with Everton at Goodison Park.
The Magpies said goodbye to Goodison Park by playing the home side off the park for large portions of the game, but ultimately failed to convert that domination into anything meaningful.
Anthony Gordon missed a first-half penalty before blazing over the bar in a one-on-one with Jordan Pickford in the second half.
Bruno Guimares took the ball off Gordon's toe to blast one over the bar in the second half after having a shot fortuitously cleared off the line by an unknowing Iliman Ndiaye in the first half.
Everything was heading in the right direction for Newcastle. The decisions were going the Magpies' way; the disallowed Everton goal, Newcastle being awarded a penalty, Everton not being awarded one ... but for whatever reason, Newcastle just couldn't captialise.
Taking to social media after the game, Bruno Guimaraes called it a frustrating game, which is exactly what it was.
"Frustration to not get the 3 points. I think we deserved a win today. No time for regrets. We move on and see you after the international break. Once again, thank you for your support as always @NUFC fans"
Eddie Howe now has two weeks to come up with a plan to make his side more decisive and more threatening in the final third.
We may have Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson returning from injury after the break, but that's not a magic fix. If we don't supply out strikers with decent opportunities, then there's not much they can do.
Isak has been isolated far more than he should be this season. He's one of the most talented forwards in the Premier League and we aren't using him properly. He's not a lone striker, he needs someone around him for the give-and-go, someone to pull defenders out of position to allow him the space to do what he does best, and we've just not been providing that.
PL | GD | PTS | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Liverpool
|
12 | 16 | 31 |
2 |
Manchester City
|
12 | 5 | 23 |
3 |
Chelsea
|
12 | 9 | 22 |
4 |
Arsenal
|
12 | 9 | 22 |
5 |
Brighton
|
12 | 5 | 22 |
6 |
Tottenham Hotspur
|
12 | 14 | 19 |
7 |
Nottingham Forest
|
12 | 2 | 19 |
8 |
Aston Villa
|
12 | 0 | 19 |
9 |
Fulham
|
12 | 0 | 18 |
10 |
Newcastle United
|
12 | 0 | 18 |
11 |
Brentford
|
12 | 0 | 17 |
12 |
Manchester United
|
12 | 0 | 16 |
13 |
Bournemouth
|
12 | -1 | 15 |
14 |
West Ham United
|
12 | -4 | 15 |
15 |
Everton
|
12 | -7 | 11 |
16 |
Leicester
|
12 | -8 | 10 |
17 |
Wolves
|
12 | -8 | 9 |
18 |
Ipswich
|
12 | -10 | 9 |
19 |
Crystal Palace
|
12 | -7 | 8 |
20 |
Southampton
|
12 | -15 | 4 |