Newcastle want to build their team around Alexander Isak, and could one day find Micky van de Ven buried in the foundations.
The home forward made the fastest player in Premier League history look like a tugboat, whose speed of thought was too fast for the Tottenham defender’s feet, however quick they are.
Here was only one of that pair worthy of comparison with Usain Bolt. Because while Isak wore spiked sneakers, Van de Ven wore skates. Rio Ferdinand compared it to a Rolls Royce before kick-off. The Peckham-raised pundit could do with a post-game from Robin Reliant.
The goal that saw the ball roll and Van de Ven fall saw Isak run inside the Dutch centre-back before firing past Guglielmo Vicario in the 31st minute. There is an image of the Spurs man literally spinning, his head in the floor as if he were break dancing.
Within 90 seconds I was back on the dance floor, but it was a black and white party. This time, Anthony Gordon beat Van de Ven, who slid again, and the winger slotted past Vicario.
Alexander Isak fumed at St James’ Park as Newcastle overcame Tottenham in a 4-0 win.
The Sweden international bagged a brace as he danced past the Spurs defense on Saturday.
The 24-year-old forward’s stock has continued to rise throughout the 2023-24 campaign
The 51st minute arrived and Van de Ven was playing such a high line that Isak was in play due to being in his own half. He duly ran to make it 3-0. At this point, it was difficult to tell if the Dutch international was asking for a flag or asking Ange Postecoglou to take him out.
It says a lot about the visitors that there were several more deserving candidates for the hook, and before the hour captain Son Heung-min was among an unfortunate trio heading to the locker room. It is not necessary to shower early if you have not sweated at all.
That being said, Isak didn’t break a bead all afternoon. He may have the look of a long-distance runner, so lean and agile, but he moves like a sprinter off the blocks. The most impressive thing of all is that he does it with the ball at his feet. His performance mirrored that of his team: efficient, relentless and clinical.
Surprisingly, Newcastle had only 27 per cent possession, and so it was a win for Eddie Howe. He devised a game plan that allowed Spurs to have the ball, allowed them to lose it (Son gave it away twice, leading to goals) and then allowed his brilliant forward trio of Isak, Gordon and Harvey Barnes to expose the flaws of the opposition, that is, what high line and those in charge of executing it. While that strategy failed, Newcastle’s stood out. They added a fourth through more conventional means when Fabian Schar headed in a corner later on.
The Magpies looked like last season’s team, the one that finished fourth and crushed Spurs 6-1 in the same game a year ago. That will be both reassuring and frustrating for Howe, because with better luck in terms of availability (injuries and Sandro Tonali’s suspension have been crippling) they could have reached the Champions League once again.
Take Isak for example. He has started 21 of 32 league games. With him on the team more often, the 10-point gap remaining between these teams would be much smaller.
But what continues to multiply is the value of the Swede. Newcastle chief executive Darren Eales is on record as saying that every player has his value in an FFP world. Howe would prefer that not extend to Isak, who by scoring his 20th and 21st goals of the season became the first Newcastle player to score 20 in a single campaign since Alan Shearer 20 years ago.
Eddie Howe watched as his team produced a performance that will remind fans of last season.
Isak scored either side of half-time that day, taking his tally for the season to 17 goals.
“We’re trying to build a team here,” Howe said. ‘We are trying to grow everything upwards. To do this as quickly as possible, you need to keep your best players. Otherwise, you enter a transition period and have to start again. Your best players, the elite ones, are very difficult to recruit. When we get one, we have to try to keep it.’
However, Isak is not alone. Gordon was sensational. He robbed Destiny Udogie of the opener before finding goalscorer Isak in the box. He soon capitalized on Pedro Porro’s desperate back pass, capitalized on Van de Ven’s attempted intervention and scored his eleventh of the season to make it 2-0. He was also his corner for Schar’s goal. In a clash between England hopefuls, Anthony Gordon 3 James Maddison 0 for goal contributions.
Bruno Guimaraes was the creator of Isak’s second, showing the presence of mind to exploit Ange Ball with an angled ball over the top. It seemed easy, but passes like that are the exclusive domain of an elite player. Like Isak and Gordon, Guimaraes is that.
Howe, then, has the core of a Champions League team. Newcastle, as the coach wishes, should take advantage of what they already have.