A poor five-minute stretch doomed Newcastle in a 2-1 loss to Palace

Newcastle United picked up a very early lead vs. Crystal Palace, but a poor stretch of five minutes in the first half saw them concede twice in a 2-1 defeat at St. James’ Park.

Jonjo Shelvey was able to put Newcastle United up early as he smashed the ball in from outside the box in the second minute. The Magpies continued to control the action before Crystal Palace roared back to equalize and take the lead in a matter of minutes.

Taking a page from Shelvey’s playbook, Jaïro Riedewald got on the end of a loose ball and blasted in a shot from distance, and his powerful, deflected effort left Karl Darlow with no chance. Less than five minutes later, Gary Cahill got away from Fabian Schar and headed home a corner kick delivery.

Newcastle had three great chances to equalize before the break, but Ryan Fraser couldn’t convert after getting in behind the defense, Schar’s header went wide, and Miguel Almiron’s free kick clipped the crossbar.

We finally got to see an extended run of Fraser and Allan Saint-Maximin on the pitch at the same time. Saint-Maximin was electric when he got a chance to get on the ball, and Fraser was able to provide multiple quality crosses, especially in the second half.

Controlling the action throughout most of the second half, Newcastle United searched for an equalizer. But, despite three attacking substitutions by Steve Bruce, they couldn’t level this one.

Out of the ordinary, Newcastle carried a massive edge in possession and more than tripled Crystal Palace in shots. Nonetheless, it wasn’t enough to make it two consecutive positive results for the Magpies.

What’s Next?

Newcastle United’s one-goal defeat looks like a walk in the park compared to what happened to their next opponent today. Before facing the Magpies on Saturday, Southampton conceded NINE goals vs. Manchester United in a 9-0 destruction, a match that saw So’ton have two players sent off.