(5) five major things learnt during Newcastle United F.C win vs Sheffield United (5-1)

With a 5-1 win at St. James’ Park, Newcastle United sent Sheffield United to the second level of football. This kept the pressure on Sheffield United in the race for Europe.

The guests shocked everyone by going ahead with a header from Anel Ahmedhodzic after only five minutes. But Alexander Isak tied the game with a well-taken goal in the middle of the first half. Newcastle went ahead after halftime thanks to Bruno Guimaraes. After an hour, Isak scored a penalty to make it 2-0. Then, in the 65th minute, Ben Osborn scored, and late on, replacement Callum Wilson added the finishing touch.

We learned these five things from the game.

Jacob Murphy slid the ball down the right channel with 26 minutes left in the game. Alexander Isak timed his run perfectly to get there ahead of two Sheffield United players and score first-time past Wes Foderingham. It makes sense that there were no cheers on the field.

Once Isak scored his 18th league goal of the season, he took the ball right away and led his teammates back to the center circle for the restart. But Sheffield United played better at the end of the first half.

Brereton Diaz got in after 30 minutes thanks to a simple through ball. The striker coolly went around Dubravka, but Burn got back in time to save the goal. This led to a corner kick, but Mason Holgate hit the bar with it. On the rebound, Andre Brooks shot wide. It looked like Newcastle needed a wake-up call, and the break gave them just that.

After away end’s taunt, Geordies have the last laugh.
If Newcastle’s loss at Crystal Palace last week showed how bad they’ve been on the road this season, this was their chance to show why they’ve been so strong at home. Surprisingly, only Liverpool, Manchester City, and Arsenal have scored more goals at home this season. Newcastle, on the other hand, have only scored four Premier League wins away from home, but their strong play at St. James’ has kept them in the running for the Europa League.

After Anel Ahmedhodzic’s shocking first goal, it didn’t always feel like a fortress, though. It was Sheffield United fans who were yelling at them, “How s— must you be?” We’re getting ahead!”

Newcastle rips it up in the second half.
Four aims. In 18 minutes. After a bad first half, Eddie Howe told his team they needed to play better after the break, and they did.

Wor Flags greeted Bruno Guimaraes before the game. In the 54th minute, Arnold Gordon’s free kick was met with a flying header by Guimaraes, who took the roof off St. James’. Newcastle took the lead for the first time all afternoon, and it was a very important goal. Sheffield United quickly lost the game. Alexander Isak scored from the penalty spot after an hour. Ben Osborn put the ball in his own net in the middle of the second half, and Callum Wilson, who came on as a substitute, scored the fifth goal late in the game.

The clinical Manchester United is now only one point behind Newcastle in sixth place. On Saturday, Newcastle scored five goals from just seven shots on target. It seems likely that Sheffield United will be glad to see the Magpies go. No other team in the Premier League has given up more goals than Arsenal (13) in a single season.

In the first half, Sheffield United really scares the other team.
It looked like Newcastle could get back on track with a home game against the team at the bottom of the table with the worst defensive record in the 38-game Premier League season. Three days earlier, they lost badly at Crystal Palace. It was after that 2-0 loss that Fabian Schar promised the players would “leave their hearts on the pitch every game.” On Saturday, the Magpies had to do just that.

The difference in ability was clear when the team sheets came out, but Sheffield United were desperate to avoid the loss that would mathematically send the visitors down to the Championship at St. James’. Newcastle got off to the worst possible start when the Magpies were caught sleeping after a short corner routine. The ball finally got to Gustavo Hamer, whose cross was nodded in by Anel Ahmedhodzic, who wasn’t being watched, after only five minutes.

While Newcastle needed to wake up, it’s not too much of a stretch to say that Sheffield United could have been up 3-0 in the first quarter of an hour. That’s because Dan Burn made important last-ditch stops for Ben Brereton Diaz and Cameron Archer inside the box. Then, in the middle of the first half, Brereton Diaz stung Martin Dubravka’s gloves. Surprisingly, Newcastle hadn’t even had a shot on goal yet. The hosts did it quickly.

But by the time Newcastle scored five goals in a row, Geordies were telling Sheffield United fans to “say hello to Sunderland” because the Blades had been relegated.

Bruno Guimaraes shows love because he feels it.
Even though Bruno Guimaraes was far from Brazil, he must have felt right at home on Saturday because the Gallowgate End cheered for both him and fellow countryman Joelinton before the game. A big Brazilian flag was set up by Wor Flags next to a banner that said, “From Alicana and Rio to Newcastle upon Tyne, a home away from home.” We have two Brazilian Geordies named Joelinton and Bruno.

It was a very fitting homage. Not only after Joelinton signed a new long-term deal with the club, but also because there is a lot of talk about Bruno’s future and the chance that one of his many suitors will activate his £100m release clause before the end of June. Wor Flags were put up to show the couple “how much they are loved.” Bruno ran to the Gallowgate to cheer the display while his fans yelled his name. They were talking about Bruno’s magic hat before the game started.

The flex on Howe’s bench at 4-1 up
The first day of this crazy campaign felt like a sneak peek at Eddie Howe’s big plan. Newcastle was already 3-1 up against Aston Villa when their manager decided to bring on Callum Wilson and Harvey Barnes. Both of them scored, giving Newcastle a comfortable lead.

Howe hasn’t had such good backup players in a while because his team has been hurt a lot lately, but with Newcastle already 4-1 up on Saturday, he was able to bring on Wilson and Barnes for Jacob Murphy and Elliot Anderson. They made an impression right away. In the 72nd minute, Barnes cleverly tipped the ball into Wilson’s path. The number nine then finished well to score his first goal since December.