Newcastle 1 – 1 West Ham

Newcastle were brought back to earth after their Carabao Cup heroics in midweek as West Ham held them to a 1-1 draw at St James’ Park.

The Magpies have made huge strides under Eddie Howe this season – with a Wembley date against Manchester United in the Carabao Cup final later this month clear evidence of his progress – but his form in the Premier League has been long overdue.

Newcastle made a stunning start to the contest, with Joe Willock’s strike in the first minute ruled out by VAR, before Callum Wilson opened the scoring just two minutes later.

But West Ham had the better of the hosts and equalized before half-time through Lucas Paqueta, who became the first player to score against Newcastle in the Premier League since November 6 and gave them a fourth draw in their last five games in the competition.

Gordon’s debut failed to inspire the goal-shy Magpies

Newcastle remain in a strong position to return to the Champions League group stage for the first time since 2002/03 – with fifth-placed Tottenham four points behind – but have now drawn as many Premier League games as they have won this season (10).

More important is the number of goals the Magpies are currently conceding in the league – just two in their last five games – and they have been unable to find their form in the final third after Paqueta’s remarkable clean sheet ended.

The match started in remarkable fashion, with Willock drilling the ball past Lukasz Fabianski seconds from kick-off, but VAR ruled out the strike after the ball appeared to have just come out of play earlier.

But Newcastle fended off the blow to score again just 11 seconds after the restart, with Sean Longstaff sending a superb through ball to Wilson, who was given plenty of space by West Ham’s three-man defense before slotting past Fabianski.

But the West Ham goalkeeper was undisturbed for the remaining 87 minutes, and the visitors hit back when Paqueta latched onto Declan Rice’s corner and beat Nick Pope, who missed the chance to become the first English goalkeeper to record seven consecutive Premier League goals. clean sheets.

Nayef Aguerd missed a good chance to give West Ham the lead just before half-time, and the home fans – perhaps still coming down from Tuesday’s celebrations – looked glum.

Anthony Gordon’s debut from the bench following his £45m move from Everton made Newcastle fans and Allan Saint-Maximin – his first Premier League start since August – and Wilson close.

But in the end West Ham comfortably held on for a draw that kept them one point above the relegation zone and extended their unbeaten run to three games in all competitions.

Howe: We gave Rice too much time

Eddie Howe admits Newcastle were unable to sustain their blistering start and Declan Rice was allowed “too much time” in his side.

“It was a tight game,” Howe said. “I thought it was a bright start from us – a strange opening when we scored twice, but we couldn’t do it in the first half.

“I thought in the second half we were really good – we couldn’t put it away.

“West Ham have very good players. I don’t think we were bad in the first half – we just didn’t follow the momentum. It was almost impossible after the first five minutes – we were electric and the crowd. They were in the game.

“But I don’t think we stamped our authority in the game like we wanted to. We allowed Declan Rice too much time. You can’t do that – he’s a quality player – so I wanted our midfielder to press more.

“They scored – a poor goal by a very high standard – and in the second half we did everything but score.”

Lack of goals is a problem for Newcastle

Sky Sports’ Joe Shread:

There is certainly no time to panic, but Howe is certainly becoming more aware of Newcastle’s profligateness in front of goal.

The Magpies’ figures are well in line with their league position, with the fourth-placed side ranked fourth for goals conceded and sixth for goals scored in the Premier League this season.

As a result, it would be unfair to criticize Newcastle’s attacking prowess, but it is clear that their lack of success in the final third has hampered Howe’s side over the past six weeks.

Seven points and two goals in their last five league games is something Howe will be looking to improve on as the battle for a Champions League place heats up, although just one defeat and 12 goals conceded in 21 matches is unheard of in the top flight.

Howe said Newcastle missed the suspended Bruno Guimaraes – who he called a “difference maker” – and admitted he was “responsible for letting the team down”.

Perhaps the addition of Gordon, who looked charming in his debut, and the return of the record signing Alexander Isak, who missed the game with a concussion, will relight the fire in Newcastle’s attack.

With a trip to former club Bournemouth next weekend, followed by Liverpool’s visit and a cup final against Manchester United – which will see Guimareas return – before the end of the month, Howe hopes that is the case.

Moyes: We were fantastic

West Ham manager David Moyes thought his team’s performance was “fantastic”, but was still unhappy with the way they started the game.

“I think we get a little bit of credit because we didn’t play well, but I thought we were really good today,” Moyes said. “We deserve credit for coming here and putting in a good performance.

“The first minute was expected by how Newcastle started the game, so we only have ourselves to blame. We got away with the first one, but you hope that the goalkeeper will see it before. The goal 20, 30 seconds later.

“We responded very well. We played well in the first half. We passed the ball well, we showed good control and created some good chances for ourselves. I was very happy with the way the players played.

“It was only a point but we took it. It was a tough game for us and it was a bit of a run for us. We’d love to come here and win, but we’re up against the right team. Good form.”

West Ham build momentum ahead of Chelsea clash

West Ham have lost just two of their last eight games at home to Chelsea and the visit of their rivals on Saturday looks set to come at the right time.

The Blues are currently ninth in the Premier League, with just two wins from their last 11 games in all competitions, and the Hammers finally appear to have turned the corner on what has been an underwhelming season.

Speaking after the draw at Newcastle, Jamie Redknapp told Sky Sports: “I think I can take a lot from that performance.

“Moyes will look at the squad now, look at the players that can be used, the quality that is better there and then also the backs.

“Danny Ings is going to be a fantastic signing, he’s going to get a lot of goals and he’s going to be looking forward to the game against Chelsea next weekend. That’s the type of game he’s going to play.

“He will have been nervous before today’s game because it’s a difficult place to go. To go and pick up a really valuable point, it’s just continuing to walk.”

That run has seen West Ham lose just once in six games so far in 2023 – a sign that Moyes is likely to reinvigorate the team that produced a memorable 2021/22 campaign.

What’s next?

Newcastle has returned Sky Sports when Eddie Howe returned to his former side Bournemouth Next Saturday; kick-off 5.30pm. He lives too Sky Sports when Liverpool visit St James’ Park on Saturday 18 February; kick-off 5.30pm.

West Ham face back-to-back London derby and welcome Chelsea to the London Stadium on Saturday 11 February in a lunchtime game; kick-off 12.30pm. He then visited Tottenham reside Sky Sports on Sunday February 19; kick-off 4.30pm.