Alexander Isak scored twice as Newcastle beat Wolves 3-0 at St James’ Park to maneuver into the highest 4.
The striker has now netted in eight consecutive Premier League video games, breaking a membership report and changing into solely the fourth man to do this within the competitors. Newcastle have received the final six of these video games to propel them into the Champions League spots.
Isak’s first objective was deflected into the underside nook of the web through Rayan Ait-Nouri and his second was simple, given area contained in the Wolves field. The Swede even offered the help for Newcastle’s third, establishing Anthony Gordon to attain.
It mirrored Newcastle’s dominance regardless of Jorgen Strand Larsen placing the put up and Santi Bueno having a objective disallowed. Vitor Pereira’s facet drop again into the relegation zone following this defeat, their Premier League standing wanting precarious once more.
In distinction, Newcastle, with 9 victories in a row in all competitions, appear to be a crew on the up below Eddie Howe. The entire crew seem in high kind – and it helps that Howe can rely on the providers of arguably one of the best striker in Europe proper now.
Isak’s influence in stats
- Isak turned the fourth participant in Premier League historical past to attain in eight consecutive appearances, after Ruud van Nistelrooy (twice for Man Utd), Jamie Vardy (twice for Leicester) and Daniel Sturridge (for Liverpool).
- He additionally turned the seventh Newcastle participant to attain 25+ Premier League targets at St James’ Park – of these gamers, solely Andrew Cole (23 video games) and Alan Shearer (26) bought to 25 targets in fewer video games than the Swedish ahead (34).
Participant of the match: Alexander Isak
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe, talking to TNT Sports activities:
“The primary objective was key right this moment.
“I think he [Isak] will probably say he meant it, the way things are going for him at the moment. But he has picked the ball up wide left and he has got that freedom because he is a really good dribbler. We encourage him to get on the ball as much as he can.
“When you’ve got the technical abilities that he has, I believe it’s large for us that we don’t ask him to be too central and static. We’d like him on the ball, we wish him on the ball, as a lot as attainable within the attacking third so he does have freedom to get the ball.
“He makes [the second goal] look an easy finish but it is absolutely not because you might get one of those in a game and we need him to take it. But he has got that calmness and that coolness that all the top players have.”
Something is feasible, provides Howe
Requested within the press convention if this sends a message to Newcastle’s rivals for the highest 4, Howe stated:
“I don’t know if it sends a message, we’re just doing what we need to do. That won’t change in the respect that we’ve got to try and win games and put points consistently together.
“We’re nonetheless in a busy interval, we have got a large recreation developing so we have to recuperate effectively and give attention to that.
“Anything is possible but we have to get results and do it consistently. We struggled in the early season with being in and out of form. This has been a really good run and propelled us to a really good position. We need to carry that on.
“There must be extra to come back and that is the problem we now have to pose to the gamers as a result of right this moment wasn’t excellent, the final 20 minutes weren’t nice. We have to continue to grow, evolving and bettering as a result of the challenges solely get tougher.”
Analysis: Tonali key for Newcastle
The performance of Isak understandably takes the headlines but the efforts of Sandro Tonali in midfield were equally impressive in their own way. The Italian returned to the starting line-up in mid-December and Newcastle have won every game since.
“I believed Sandro was magnificent right this moment,” Howe said afterwards. “We all the time ask our midfielders to do totally different jobs relying on our opposition. At present he had a deeper position off the ball and I believed he did it completely brilliantly,
“He followed it to the letter. He was putting out a lot of transition issues for us, so I thought his individual performance was strong but I thought midfield was the key area because we had a lot of the ball and they all used the ball really well.”
Pereira explains Lemina omission
Wolves boss Vitor Pereira talking within the press convention:
“The result didn’t show what happened in the game. I am so proud of the players – we created many chances. We will get confidence and begin to score.
“Within the second half they [Newcastle] can rating a objective and we now have to grasp that. They’ve the striker [Isak] who may be very quick and nice high quality.
“We tried to do everything well so I can’t criticise the defenders.”
Pereira additionally defined why former captain Mario Lemina was not in his squad for the sport.
“I cannot play a player who says he does not feel mentally in a condition to help the team. I cannot play a player who comes to me and says that. He says he wants to leave.
“This mentality I don’t want. I’d moderately give an opportunity to somebody who’s dedicated. He got here to my workplace after the press convention yesterday.”
Evaluation: Wolves’ weak defence
Pereira has made Wolves extra compact since his arrival however back-to-back 3-0 defeats within the Premier League underline the defensive enchancment nonetheless required if this group of gamers are to retain their top-flight standing for subsequent season.
Emmanuel Agbadou was included for his Premier League debut however endured some awkward moments, whereas Santi Bueno and Matt Doherty had been additionally culpable in permitting an excessive amount of area inside their very own field for the second and third Newcastle targets.
Pereira will want extra from his attackers too, having created greater than sufficient alternatives to attain at St James’ Park and in that residence defeat to Nottingham Forest. However it’s the defence, the worst within the Premier League, that continues to be the largest concern.
