Newcastle climbed again into the highest 4 after coming from behind to beat lowly Southampton 3-1 at St Mary’s.
Jan Bednarek’s header put Saints – who are actually 11 factors from Premier League security – in entrance, however Alexander Isak’s double and a 3rd from Sandro Tonali did the job for Eddie Howe’s males on the south coast.
Purple-hot Isak has now scored 14 targets in his final 11 video games in all competitions.
The Magpies had put the strain on from the off, eager to avenge final week’s 4-1 defeat to Bournemouth, however it was Southampton who took the lead towards the run of play inside 10 minutes when James Bree’s peach of a cross was powerfully headed house by the unmarked Bednarek.
Saints’ first aim at St Mary’s since December 4 gave the house crowd and carry, in addition to former Toon participant Adam Armstrong, who hit one shot at Martin Dubravka and one other narrowly over. However he was quickly left to rue these misses as Newcastle rapidly turned the sport on its head.
The guests had been first awarded a penalty after a VAR assessment, with Joe Aribo adjudged to have made “sufficient contact” with Isak because the pair jostled contained in the field, regardless of referee Sam Barrott having initially awarded a nook. He went to the monitor to substantiate the choice, and Isak made no mistake as he rolled his spot-kick into the underside left nook.
Isak doubled the lead with a cool end into the other nook of the web, courtesy of a stupendous help from Jacob Murphy, and it may have been three shortly after when Joelinton crashed a shot off the submit with Alex McCarthy crushed.
The guests prolonged their lead 5 minutes after the restart – and the third was crafted in such a slick method; Isak flicked the ball to Anthony Gordon along with his shoulder, with Gordon then hitting a first-time ball into the trail of Tonali, who arrived from nowhere, drove on and struck low previous McCarthy.
Saints dug in and maybe confirmed extra grit than in earlier weeks and months, however meaning little with out outcomes to go together with it – and so they had been denied the possibility to mount a late comeback when Matheus Fernandes’ late strike was dominated out by VAR, who judged him to have strayed marginally offside within the build-up.
