'Massive achievement' for Newcastle as Palace toothless on road again

Matthew Howarth, BBC Sport

Considering the position Newcastle were in when Eddie Howe took over in November - 19th in the table and five points from safety - reaching 40 points with five games to spare has to go down as a magnificent achievement.

Many will point to the Magpies' January outlay of more than £90m as the chief reason behind their march up the table, but that is an oversimplification.

Howe has had to make do without England full-back Kieran Trippier and 2020-21 top scorer Callum Wilson through injury, while the talismanic Allan Saint-Maximin has been frustratingly inconsistent since returning to fitness in March.

Others have stepped up to the plate, of course - chief among them former Lyon midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, who was heavily involved in the game's only goal.

That was a richly deserved lead for the home side, who dominated midfield in the first half in particular and restricted Palace to just one tame Odsonne Edouard effort before the interval.

Crystal Palace improved after half-time and pinned the home side back in the closing stages, but other than Wilfried Zaha's two efforts off target they rarely looked like leaving St James' Park with a share of the spoils.

The Eagles have now failed to score in seven of their 15 Premier League away games this season. Only Norwich (10) and Watford (nine) have drawn blanks in more away fixtures in the competition this term.

Patrick Vieira, whose side were beaten by Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, cut a frustrated figure at full-time, but his opposite number Howe could not hide his delight after guiding the Magpies to their ninth win in 13 league games.