Newcastle United are on fire after earning their fourth consecutive victory at St. James’ Park last night with a big win against Burnley.
Newcastle United have extended their good run of form with an impressive 2-0 victory over an in-form Burnley side last night. The Magpies dominated the match from start to finish in every aspect of the game. Two goals from Fabian Schar and Sean Longstaff sealed the deal for Newcastle who now sit seven points clear of the relegation zone with 31 points from 28 matches. Newcastle will travel to London this weekend to face West Ham, but before going too far ahead let us analyze yesterday’s performance.
Unlikely Scorers are Welcome
It is quite obvious how much Newcastle depend on Salomon Rondon, the team’s leading scorer, for goals, but every now and then new faces place their names on the score sheet. Last night, Fabian Schar and Sean Longstaff stepped up for the Toon in a big way. The team did not have the same offensive flare they had against Huddersfield and players like Rondon, Miguel Almiron and Ayoze Perez did not have many looks at goal.
The fact that Schar found his inner-Ronaldo and decided to score a screamer from distance was a major relief for Newcastle as they failed to create meaningful chances before that moment. Longstaff’s goal in the 38th minute added some much-needed cushion. This type of scoring diversity is just what Newcastle need going forward.
Another Clean Sheet
The fact that Newcastle won and earned another clean sheet in the process shows just how prepared this team is for must-win matches. Martin Dubravka re-gained his confidence and the back-line in front of him played with urgency and composure. Last night’s clean sheet helps the team tremendously in this relegation battle as Newcastle’s goal differential of -8 is the second-best in the bottom half of the table. More defensive performances like this will surely lead to more positive results.
Perfect Ball Distribution
A key reason why Newcastle managed to win against a tough Burnley side last night was because of how well they moved the ball around. The Magpies completed 444 passes and they did so by spreading the ball out wide down both flanks, which forced Burnley to stretch their defenders out. Newcastle maintained 55% of the possession as a result of their good ball movement and this made Burnley’s frustration quite noticeable, especially in the second half.