So, the extremes available to both teams – Champions League and Championship – have edged a little closer after Spurs won in style. Newcastle did not play like a team in freefall, but the final score doesn’t lie, and once Eriksen had restored Spurs’ lead, the game was effectively over. In almost every department, the visitors were superior.
The game, fleetingly entertaining as it was, felt like a sideshow on another afternoon of unrest on Tyneside. The official (and clearly exaggerated) attendance today was 47,427 – the club’s lowest home crowd of the season, and still the biggest crowd to attend a game in England this weekend.
Despite the empty seats, the Sunderland banner, the branded Ashley Out vans and John Carver’s changes, the afternoon ended predictably, in defeat. With a reasonable run-in, and breathing space below them, they still should just about stay up. Where they go from here, though, is anyone’s guess. Thanks a lot for joining me. Bye!
FT: Newcastle 1-3 Tottenham
That’s your lot. Spurs climb to sixth; Newcastle lose their sixth league game on the spin. You might think with nobody left in the ground, there wouldn’t be booing. You’d be wrong.
90 mins: Three minutes of injury time, although they won’t be seen by the thousands who headed for the exit as soon as Kane scored.
GOAL! Newcastle 1-3 Tottenham (Kane)
...and from the break, they end the game, with Lamela dribbling straight down the middle, before slipping the ball through to Kane. He’s beyond the last defender, one-on-one with Krul, and rolls the ball into the far corner. Drought over.
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89 mins: Bar the Colback goal, Carver’s changes haven’t helped Newcastle, who are now forced into going long to bypass the midfield, despite a lack of height up front. They pile forward for a long hoof from Krul, but the ball won’t drop, and Spurs can break...
87 mins: Ryan Taylor’s long ball is nodded away, but only as far as Janmaat, who controls the ball on his chest before sending a volley high over the bar. Newcastle running out of time.
86 mins: Spurs again have numbers forward, but Dier’s attempted through pass to Kane is sloppy, and Newcastle can break. Bentaleb does what’s required, hauling down Cabella and earning a booking. Ryan Mason is on, in place of Paulinho.
84 mins: Spurs look a touch panicked whenever the ball’s in their final third, as they’re forced to remember they only lead by a goal. From a free-kick some 35 yards out, Taylor pings a low diagonal ball towards Perez, but for the first time today, the striker miscues, and the ball rolls away for a goal kick.
82 mins: Kane, looking at a third straight game without scoring, earns a corner, which Fazio heads out of Krul’s gloves. There’s no whistle – thankfully for Newcastle, the header bounces wide.
80 mins: Cabella has faded from view in the second half, but he picks up the ball on the left and feeds Taylor, who slots the ball to Janmaat. The full-back takes aim from 30 yards out, and sends a respectable effort over Michel Vorm’s goal.
78 mins: Rose is flagged offside to end a promising Spurs passing move. Pochettino makes his first change, with Moussa Dembele replacing Chadli.
76 mins: More sterling work from Janmaat down the right side, and his low ball into the box is just out of Colback’s reach. Spurs spring forward, and Kane shoots at Krul with Lamela hollering at the England man for a pass.
74 mins: Spurs are starting to stretch the Newcastle back line, and Bentaleb, perhaps the standout performer in midfield today, finds Lamela with a dangerous diagonal pass – but Krul is out smartly to save his low shot. A final change for Newcastle, with young forward Adam Armstrong on in place on Anita.
72 mins: Bentaleb scoops the ball over the Newcastle back line and into the path of Kane, who loses his balance near the right touchline, with team-mates arriving in the middle.
69 mins: Newcastle force a couple of corners, with Rose intercepting Anita’s cross on the second to clear the danger. It’s subdued inside St. James’ Park – a reflection of the fans not wanting to turn on the players, or a sign that John Carver is harder to hurl abuse at than Alan Pardew?
67 mins: Tim Krul is having an odd afternoon. From the corner, he somehow repels a Kane volley from six yards out. It looked like a combination of hands, face and neck that kept it out, with Anita on the line to prod the rebound away. I’ve no idea how that didn’t go in.
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66 mins: The Eriksen goal has proved something of a sucker punch for Newcastle, and Spurs are making most of the running now. Kane finds a pocket of space to the left of Krul’s goal, but delays the pass, and has to settle for a corner.
64 mins: More Spurs possession, although Newcastle are at least chasing with gusto, spurred on by the home crowd. Kane almost gets away from Williamson with a neat bit of ball-juggling, but the defender keeps him at bay.
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61 mins: After a short, unexplained delay, Ryan Taylor lifts the ball in, it finds its way to Perez, but the Spanish striker’s shot from an angle is blocked. Spurs look to break, Cabella checks Lamela, and gets a booking. Taking one for the team, we call that.
59 mins: Janmaat, tight to the right touchline, finds Perez, who flicks the ball away from Verthongen, in the direction of Obertan. The Belgian doesn’t stand a chance, and upends Perez, picking up a yellow card in the process. Dangerous free kick for Newcastle, here.
56 mins: Kane, again working the channels, sees his cross towards Eriksen flicked to safety by Coloccini. There is then a prolonged lull, allowing for several super slow-mo replays of the second Spurs goal. The verdict: Eriksen’s goal.
54 mins: Spurs look to turn the screw, with Chadli finding Bentaleb with a terrific, dipping cross from the left. Bentaleb heads over from eight yards out, when he should hit the target, particularly given Krul’s game so far.
GOAL! Newcastle 1-2 Tottenham (Eriksen)
...and he scores! The ball in is excellent, skimming over the heads of several players, arriving late in Krul’s field of vision. The goalkeeper gets a hand to it, but can only push it meekly into the corner. It appears the ball passed through without anyone getting a touch, and it’s Eriksen who celebrates.
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51 mins: Eriksen is trying to exploit the extra space in Newcastle’s midfield, and he’s brought down by Colback, who had a fistful of the Dane’s shirt. He’s already been booked, and needs to calm it down a touch. Eriksen lines up the free-kick on the left flank...
49 mins: Spurs again keep the ball neatly in the Newcastle half, before Eriksen embarks on an ill-advised run through the middle, before losing the ball. A terrible start to the second half, after an opening period where they led without doing very much.
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GOAL! Newcastle 1-1 Tottenham (Colback)
The changes worked, evidently. Carver changes to a 4-4-2, and it pays off within fifteen seconds! Janmaat finds space on the right and slips a pass to Perez, who looks offside. There’s no flag, he turns Vertonghen before his pass is cut out by Dier – but the rebound falls to Jack Colback, who sweeps it inside the near post!
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Changes: Gabriel Obertan and Sammy Ameobi are on, in place of Abeid and Gouffran. The second half is underway... now.
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It’s just finished Aston Villa 2-1 Liverpool in the FA Cup semi-final. Tim Sherwood’s going to the Cup Final!
Incidentally, if Villa win the Cup, they will take a Europa League place; if Arsenal win, and qualify for the Champions League, the cup winners’ spot will go to the seventh placed team, not the runners up. News that may be of interest to Spurs fans, I’d imagine.
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HT: Newcastle 0-1 Tottenham
The home fans who have turned up are booing. That about sums it up.
45 mins: Another booking for Spurs, with Lamela rightly booked for a reckless, and rather pointless, foul on Anita by the Newcastle goalline. One added minute.
43 mins: Harry Kane has been lurking with intent on the fringes so far, and from a decent crossing position on the left, he tests Krul, who this time is equal to the stinging shot. Paulinho is booked for a foul on Cabella in the previous Newcastle attack.
41 mins: Newcastle edge upfield, with Cabella fending off challenges before finding Gouffran. The Frenchman’s slipped pass finds Colback, who is challenged by Fazio. Another silky move from Newcastle, but why exactly was Jack Colback the furthest player upfield?
40 mins: Colback has tested Kevin Friend’s patience one too many times, and goes in the book after another clumsy challenge. Here’s Gary Naylor to kick Newcastle while they’re down:
38 mins: Perez looks like a player who can create a goal out of nowhere, and how Newcastle need that. The 21-year-old tests Vorm again with a curling shot from 25 yards out. Plenty of quality, if little real threat, from the Newcastle front line so far.
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34 mins: Spurs continue to find things easy in possession, until Perez dispossesses Verthongen, winning a free kick in the process. Newcastle give the ball straight back, with Dier seeking out Kane with a lofted ball down the right – but Kane is flagged offside.
Here’s an impossibly exotic email from Mick Cathcart:
“Since you seem a bit short of company, I thought I’d break the habit of a lifetime and get in touch. I’m following you through a steam-age dial-up connection in Lhasa, Tibet routed through a VPN in Berkshire. Tell me, how empty is the ground? How many people have actually had the bottle to stay away? I stopped going last year and won’t go back until that man no longer owns my club...”
There are plenty of empty seats, Mick, but there are enough fans in the ground to cover it. It’s more FA Cup third round day than visible, organised protest.
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31 mins: That had actually been a decent half-hour for Newcastle, but then their entire team, including Krul, stopped playing for thirty seconds. You can’t do that. Spurs, buoyed by the goal, charge forward, with Colback bringing down a rampaging Danny Rose, and earning a talking to from Kevin Friend.
GOAL! Newcastle 0-1 Tottenham (Chadli)
Gouffran, trying to hold the ball up in his own half, is crowded out, and Nacer Chadli picks it up. The midfielder runs unopposed to the edge of the area, and hits a firm shot that beats Tim Krul at the near post.
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28 mins: Cabella, who has looked the most likely to make something happen, offers up a curling right-footed cross from the left which just evades Gouffran.
26 mins: Newcastle win a free-kick practically in the corner quadrant, next to a particularly empty corner of the ground. Ryan Taylor puts in a dangerous ball, and Williamson meets it, but under pressure from Vertonghen he can only head over.
24 mins: Now Newcastle try stringing a few passes together, with Perez holding up play smartly, before finding Colback on the left. All three forwards are in the area, but Colback doesn’t know that, because he doesn’t look up, and beams the ball over the lot of them.
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22 mins: Spurs have a bash at a counter-attack themselves, with Kane finding Eriksen, who sets off down the left. His cross bounces up for Paulinho, but the Brazilian tries to feed the ball through to Lamela, rather than take a shot himself. Lamela stretches, but can’t reach it.
20 mins: The game is settling into a pattern, with Newcastle’s front three looking to hit Spurs on the break. 63% possession for the visitors thus far, but another half-chance for the hosts, as Cabella tries to hit Gouffran’s looping cross first time, but sees it deflected into Vorm’s arms.
18 mins: Spurs have plenty of time and space in midfield to stroke the ball around, and another neat move ends with Paulinho blazing over from 25 yards out. That banner, though. I think the Premier League season has just reached a new low.
16 mins: HERE COMES THE BANNER!
Due to its small size and the lack of noise inside St. James’ Park, I think more people heard the plane than saw its provocative cargo.
14 mins: This has actually been a lively start, all things considered. The hosts get the best chance of the match, with Gouffran picking out Perez, who sidefoots the ball straight at Vorm. That was a presentable chance.
12 mins: Spurs respond in kind, with Danny Rose scampering down the left wing and collecting Kane’s through ball, before drilling a low ball right across the six-yard box. It is just about cleared, before Rose is flagged offside from the follow-up.
11 mins: Ayoze Perez, looking very much alone despite playing in a nominal front three, chases after Anita’s through ball, but is flagged offside. He wasn’t, and would likely have got there ahead of Vorm. A let-off for Spurs.
9 mins: Cabella seeks out Perez with a raking forward pass, but Dier is across to cover. At the other end, Lamela overruns the ball with team-mates available. The atmosphere is strange.
7 mins: After a spell of, let’s say, casual stuff, Harry Kane is felled by Vurnon Anita, playing at left-back today. Anita that is, not Kane. It looked accidental, but Anita’s arm caught Kane, and he needs treatment before returning to the field.
4 mins: Cabella, playing alongside Perez and Gouffran up front, makes the first in-roads for the hosts with a darting run down the left. His low ball just evades Gouffran, lurking on the edge of the area.
Meanwhile, it seems Jonas Gutierrez, left out of the matchday squad today, was available to play, and doesn’t mind who knows it...
2 mins: Total control from the visitors so far, with Coloccini getting across to block off a Harry Kane run, conceding a corner, which comes to nothing. The away fans are audible from up high, although they don’t have to try too hard.
Peep
Here we go, then. St. James’ has filled up considerably ahead of kick-off, although there are still swathes of empty seats. Newcastle are in black and white, with Spurs in yellow.
Five minutes or so until kick-off. You wouldn’t want to be in John Carver’s shoes today, but Spurs fan Peter Crosby has some soothing words for the Newcastle head coach:
“When you’ve lost five games in a row, your fans are protesting, you have a struggling rookie manager, you’re in danger of slipping into a relegation battle, and the future looks bleak, never fear – we’ll be happy to get your season back on track with an obligingly brittle performance and the gift of three precious points.”
Certainly plenty of evidence of the Ashley Out campaign around the ground – no word yet on whether it will greatly affect the attendance inside St. James’ Park, although it looks pretty sparse with 15 minutes until kick-off. Word has it that Sunderland fans are planning to fly a banner over a potentially half-empty ground today, celebrating five straight derby victories. Not the time, guys.
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The managers have surfaced for some pre-match chat. John Carver is pleased to welcome back Fabricio Coloccini, and said Newcastle “almost look like a senior football side” with players returning from injury. Faint praise if ever I heard it.
Mauricio Pochettino took the opportunity to play down the changes made after the home defeat to Aston Villa, and to join Carver in calling, not entirely convincingly, for six wins out of six to finish the season.
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Team news
Two changes for Newcastle, as Fabricio Coloccini returns after a three-game ban, while Moussa Sissoko starts a two-game suspension of his own. Yoan Gouffran also comes into the team, in place of Gabriel Obertan.
It’s evolution, not revolution, for Mauricio Pochettino, with three changes from the team that lost to Aston Villa. Jan Vertonghen returns in defence and takes the captain’s armband back from Kane, while Paulinho replaces Mason and Lamela comes in for Andros Townsend.
Newcastle United: Krul; Janmaat, Williamson, Coloccini (c), Anita; Abeid, R Taylor, Colback; Cabella, Gouffran, Perez.
Subs: Woodman, Obertan, Ameobi, Riviere, Armstrong, Kemen, Sterry.
Tottenham Hotspur: Vorm; Dier, Fazio, Vertonghen (c), Rose,
Paulinho, Bentaleb; Lamela, Eriksen, Chadli; Kane.
Subs: Friedel, Soldado, Yedlin, Townsend, Dembele, Davies, Mason.
Referee: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire)
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Preamble
Hello. Newcastle and Spurs, two teams usually front and centre when the high farce is handed out, have done their best to avoid any drama this season, yet both sets of players find themselves kicking their heels at Gatwick, somehow with something still to play for. Sort of.
Newcastle signed off for the season in January, when Alan Pardew fled to Palace and poor John Carver was handed the keys. After five straight defeats, they are mired on 35 points with a lengthy list of absentees, and could still go down. Theoretically.
Spurs, meanwhile, have run into a poor patch of form that even Harry Kane can’t solve. Kane has got the traditional dip in form in early after his England debut, and Mauricio Pochettino has noticed. As things stand, victory for Spurs would leave them seven points behind Manchester City in fourth, and still in the Champions League race. Technically.
To spice things up, Newcastle fans are calling for a boycott of today’s game, in the latest protest aimed squarely at the back of Mike Ashley’s head. Several season ticket holders are set to feed the ducks in Leazes Park rather than watch the match. Fans not going to the game, but still paying, sounds like something Ashley would dream up in a late-night strategy meeting, but good luck to them.
Kick-off is at 4pm BST, team news to follow.
