Well, the win streak had to come to an end at some point, but in this fashion, that was unexpected.
On Saturday, April 15, Newcastle United and Aston Villa went toe-to-toe as two of the top teams in the Premier League, and the Lions routed the Magpies, 3-0.
To start the game, Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey was able to quickly find the opening goal in the 12th minute as a deflected cross found its way to his left foot. With ease, he blasted it into the lower right corner with Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope having no shot at saving it.
After Ramsey scored, the Magpies instantly started to fall apart. Nothing really worked in their favor as the defense looked slow and stagnant, and the midfield was sloppy and all over the place.
Heading into halftime, Newcastle attempted to work their way back into the game with a few opportunities, taking just three shots in the first half. They recorded one of their worst displays of the season on a day they needed to show up the most.
Although the team had phenomenal displays on the road at Brentford and West Ham recently, they looked asleep in the first half.
In the second half, they turned some things around.
The defense looked slightly firmer, and the offense, when given the opportunity to, made some smart plays and shots. However, the midfield still struggled heavily. They were unable to receive the ball from the defense and push it forward to the offense quickly enough without Aston Villa collapsing on them.
In the 63rd minute, the Magpies lost the ball and Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins scored a turnaround goal to push the lead to two, ultimately securing the win.
Just to add insult to injury Watkins added another goal, coming just 19 minutes later. Newcastle’s defense looked abysmal, and Pope looked horrific as the ball rolled just past his right leg and into the goal.
The contest most definitely was not a true showing of how the Magpies have been this season, but the loss keeps them in third place with 56 points. Their record now sits at 15-11-4.
Newcastle United will next look to bounce back against another top-notch team in Tottenham, who currently sits fifth in the Premier League table.
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