There was a feeling of inevitably entering the game; Fulham had won nine at home, Newcastle lost as many away from home. Of course, this would end with the visitors taking home the three points.
Trips away from St James’ Park have been difficult for Eddie Howe’s side, and the three before Saturday will surely have been a cause for concern in the Magpies’ continued bid to secure European football.
But even as their current injury crisis rears its ugly head once again to claim Joe Willock, Howe will be delighted not so much by his team’s performance, but by the result they nevertheless achieved to stay one point behind. from West Ham.
A Willian-inspired Fulham put Newcastle’s remaining players on the run, with chance after chance after chance, sweeping from end to end with precision, but went into the break with nothing to show for their efforts.
The visitors came flying out of their traps after the break, and with Anthony Gordon leading the attack, they slowly but surely worked their way back into the tie, before Guimaraes’ decisive goal, leaving the hosts rueing missed opportunities.
Bruno Guimaraes scored the only goal of the game as Newcastle beat Fulham 1-0.
Fabián Schar scored in the 75th minute of the match but his goal was annulled by the VAR.
Newcastle and Fulham players invaded the referee while the decision was being made
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Marco Silva’s program notes lamented his team’s lack of aggression in the midweek loss to Nottingham Forest; that was not a concern for the hosts on Saturday.
Antonee Robinson had the first chance of the game, cutting inside the area and tamely firing at the near post, duly saved by Martin Dubravka, before a flurry of shots from Willian.
The Brazilian, whose legend has perhaps diminished with each passing year since leaving Chelsea, was at the heart of everything good about Fulham and was a man reborn at Craven Cottage.
Behind him in the queue was Joao Palhinha, the cleaning midfielder who unscrupulously swept and cleaned any loose balls. His shot went wide before Andreas Pereira closed in for his second of the season, all in the first 17 minutes.
Newcastle remained patient out of possession and got their first chance in the 32nd minute, with danger man Alexander Isak sliding in behind, but Bernd Leno darted out to snuff out the threat, Gordon getting his first shot just five minutes later as the visitors kicked off. to give signs of awakening.
An injury to Joe Willock saw Elliot Anderson introduced as Fulham’s dominance persisted as the hosts continued to defend the Magpies, and they went into half-time really on top after one of their most impressive halves of the season.
But despite all that, it was Newcastle who came out stronger after the break, Gordon stinging Leno’s palms with a curling strike inside the box, their case for a place on the plane to Germany growing stronger with each game they played. was passing.
While Fulham had been able to advance up the pitch on a whim in the first half, they found themselves with a Magpies midfield pressing them further up the pitch and restricting their boundless speed and stamina.
Pereira managed a shot from the edge of the area, after good work from Timothy Castagne, to instill some confidence in a crowd growing more cautious by the minute, but the hosts were still unable to really test Dubravka.
For the second time in five days Silva decided to make a triple change, although this time in somewhat different circumstances. Adama Traore injected his trademark pace, strength and power into the attack and forced his way through the middle of the Newcastle team.
Newcastle thought they had got the winning goal in the 75th minute, a close-range shot by Fabian Schar disallowed by VAR for a Dan Burn foul on Calvin Bassey inside the area, but out of the jaws of deflation, Guimaraes restored the euphoria of the visitors.
The Magpies surged forward in search of that winning goal, and it was Guimaraes who was most precise on the edge of the area to fire home after an attempt was deflected by Harvey Barnes, the Brazilian hitting the goal low and hard before leave to celebrate.
The hosts continued to counter-attack and to their credit they maintained their composure and drive, but Silva’s team ran out of time and the manager will be wondering how his team did not get a goal in their fortress.
Newcastle United are 8th in the Premier League standings, Fulham 13th
There was a feeling of inevitably entering the game; Fulham had won nine at home, Newcastle lost as many away from home. Of course, this would end with the visitors taking all the points.