Newcastle United, just days after eliminating Chelsea in the Carabao Cup, defeated Arsenal, defying all the odds being speculated. While certainly, the home support did play a crucial role, nothing can be taken from the Toon players, who gave arguably their best performance in the 2024/25 PL campaign so far.
Alan Shearer in awe of Newcastle's strategy that helped them defeat Arsenal
Be it the club's attack force led by Isak, their midfield department, or the defensive backline, Newcastle stood brilliant in all the components, as they bolstered their home record against the Gunners, even better. In fact, even though the club has had just two consecutive wins, their recent performances seem to be giving flashes of their level best.
Not to forget, one of the key aspects of their most successful campaign in recent years was the proper definition of roles for every Toon player, with intensity and aggression for the complete 3 points, oozing out for the side. Club legend Alan Shearer, having closely analyzed their recent outing against Arsenal believes that the current Magpies setup has given signs of them returning to their level best.
Speaking after the fixture, the PL record scorer praised the Magpies' display, saying,
"“It was more like when they were qualifying for the Champions League. Hard to play against. Great energy. A bit of nastiness. They were really good in their pressing. Made it really difficult for Arsenal. That was much more like it.”"Alan Shearer
Even analyzing from a neutral perspective, Newcastle's win over Arsenal had it all. Be it their tried-tested flank method, with forwards helping the wing backs or freedom for the majority of the players to perform a dynamic role, or their intensity to hunt goals upfront, the Magpies club seems to be close to returning to their level best.
Finally, with consecutive brilliant wins against two of the Big 6 clubs, Arsenal and Chelsea, manager Eddie Howe seems to have got the success strategy for Newcastle, once again. The Magpies club fans would hope that the side continues the same way, as they look forward to securing European Qualification.