Newcastle 1-0 Watford: A monumental win for the Mags as Ki & Schar change the game for NUFC

What a huge moment this could be in our season.

After 10 bites at the cherry and zero wins before today, we have FINALLY got our first three points of the season, with Ayoze Perez’s second half header enough to beat an in-form Watford side – and take us out of the relegation zone.

We rode our luck in the first half – being VERY lucky to go in at the break level – but we really upped it in the second and battled until the end. It was a win borne of character and commitment, and the fans played their part too.

Perez will make the headlines, but Ki and Schar’s introduction in the second half turned the game on its head. The South Korean showed urgency, always looked forward and immediately got us on the front foot, with the Swiss centre-back coming on and bossing Isaac Success – also showing real confidence and quality as he brought the ball out from the back.

Rondon put in a big shift too and deserves huge credit. He doesn’t look 100% fit, but he did brilliantly to last the full 90 minutes (with us forced into three changes through injury). He bullied their defenders, won plenty in the air and battled from start to finish.

I said a few weeks ago that we had 10 crucial games to turn around our season. Three have now passed, but we’ve got that all important first win of the season.

Here’s the seven games we’re now face between now and Christmas:

  • Bournemouth (H)
  • Burnley (A)
  • West Ham (H)
  • Everton (A)
  • Wolves (H)
  • Huddersfield (A)
  • Fulham (H)

Let’s hope we can now kick on and get a real run going between now and the new year.

For once this season, Match of the Day will be a good watch tonight!

(Fancy writing for us? Send any articles/ideas over to us at [email protected] & we’ll get back to you!)

About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

109 thoughts on “Newcastle 1-0 Watford: A monumental win for the Mags as Ki & Schar change the game for NUFC

  1. Eric Sykes:
    Stuart and others often make the point that in order to stand still in the PL you have to progress, especially as regards the playing staff. So I did a quick analysis of what happened last year in exactly the same fixtures compared to this year. We have only played 1 promoted team, Cardiff who finish second in the Championship so I subbed Stoke who were 2nd bottom in the PL.

    This Year: 6 points, 7 goals for, 14 goals against

    Last Year: 12 points, 10 goals for, 22 against

    It is interesting that we let in a lot more goals against these teams but got double the points.

    It only took me 10 minutes so if anybody wants to check my numbers, they can.

    Here, I will put it up again because we moved pages.

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  2. georgio: because most people look at where we were last season at the same point but we played completely different teams. I just thought it would be fairer to compare our results in the same fixtures last year.

    I don’t know if it says anything and I don’t know if comparing points after the same number of games in 2 different seasons says anything either 🙂 I was just thinking about how to look at Stuarts assertion that we have gone backwards because everybody else went forwards MORE. Which I sort of agree with.

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  3. Eric , I think it tells us we have improved defensively ( less goals conceded )
    And possibly been unlucky ( 6 points as opposed to 12 )
    I did say the other day that we could quite easily of been on 5-9 points as opposed to 3 as we were on at that point but for better luck and a missed pen.
    Had we scored said pen we would maybe be on 12 again and certainly 9.

    We have to take the 3 that got relegated out of any comparison to last season and the fact that teams who remain in the PL that struggled last year have strengthened more than us too.
    Bournemouth is a team to fear this season , not so much last I think.

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  4. I don’t know what that means, Eric but what I do believe is that we can’t expect to get the same points from the same teams as last season. They got better and we didn’t. We have already dropped points against Arsenal, Chelsea and Brighton in comparison to the corresponding fixtures last season. We also took 6 points each from West Ham and Stoke. Them two teams made up nearly 30 % of our points last season.

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  5. We drew away to Bournemouth 2.2 last season, gayle got a brace and lost 0.1 at home to them, be interesting to see the corresponding fixtures result this season.

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  6. I watched some of the Bournemouth game at the weekend and they play some very attractive football. Very quick and skilful on the counter too. A draw might be the best we can expect.

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  7. I’ve always had a bit of a soft spot for B’mth like. I went out with a lass from down there who I met at Newcastle Uni, and if they were playing when we went down to visit her parents, her dad would generally take me along to the games. They were 2nd division back then and Howe was in defence. An old Mark Stein played for them one season then made way for Defoe to come in on loan.
    It was a great little club back then, dead friendly & good fans. I was amazed when they got into the PL, but have been more amazed at how they have grown since.
    They have put together a very decent squad and will definitely be a tough game.

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  8. I hope there are not too many saying that it is good news that we might lose Shelvey for the next game and basing it on a good 45 minutes from Ki. I know he has not played well this season, but has anyone? A lot of his game is based on having an outlet and that just hasn’t been there. Remember he was pivotal last season and on the fringes of the England squad. He didn’t just turn into a bad player over night which is how some of our fans react.

    But who makes the bench? Probably Hayden but his headis not in it and he is a below average PL player anyway. Time for Longstaff?

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  9. And if Muto is out, who is on the bench for him? All we really have is Murphy who there have been mumblings about that he is “not training well”. That is the kiss of death with Rafa but he will probably be an unused sub, meaning we will see Atsu at some point.

    It just shows how thin our squad really is.

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  10. I sort of remember that Shelvey was carrying an injury a few weeks ago and getting pain-killing injections? I could be wrong. Having a 3 week rest might be good for him but it seems the wrong time to give up on him. He may have players he can work with now and with Hayden being the only other EXPERIENCED central midfielder we are certainly going to need him. I’ve already seen some saying on the Chronicle boards that he is not trying etc. and expect some on Ed’s to go the same way when they stop talking politics and the US election.

    I really just love how a good 45 minutes changes everything 🙂

    But, it brings it into perspective how badly we need another central midfielder. Rafa kept Longstaff who was all ready to go on loan so please use him. I know I am repeating myself but I am done with Hayden unless he makes a miracle turnaround that he doesn’t deserve the chance at.

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  11. You know that De Gea won Man U player of the season 2 years running! The way things are going Dubravka will walk it for the 1st half of our season and that says a lot. That’s what I was saying about people criticizing Shelvey for not playing well, nobody has.

    Who else has done well? Dummett has been solid as ever. Fernandez, but Schar might be a better partner for Laschelles. That’s about it. No wonder we are in the state we are in. Just about every player has gone into a slump/funk at the same time and some (Joselu) never had it to begin with.

    Of course this is no excuse for not adding quality to the squad.

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  12. Eric, yeah I do think Shelvey’s was carrying an injury and certainly is now.
    He is one of our stand out players, but I did notice against Brighton I think it was, that having spent all game busting a gut and giving fellow team mates great passes only to see them wasted his head dropped.
    I can’t blame him really, he must think what’s the point at times. Having said all that, Ki looked very good when introduced on Saturday and if Jon jo is carrying an injury I would rest him v Bournemouth.
    Bournemouth are super quick and rapid on the counter and any injured player who isn’t up to pace will get caught out for sure. I know Jon jo’s game is more about his passing but feel we need the paciest players we can field that day.
    It’s difficult isn’t it, I wouldn’t wanna do Rafa’s job for all the tea in China mate.

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  13. They’re not Capri pants. It is an optical illusion from the curtain behind 🙂 Still a dodgy Tux that Ayoze has on though.

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  14. Eric – aye if that’s todays fashion I think I’m happy to be a square like ?.
    Please for Frank Clark being acknowledged, but over the moon about Andy Cole. He and Beardsley were just an absolute joy to watch. I was devastated when we sold him, but of course we went on to sign big Al, so that made it slightly easier to live with. But Andy Cole will always be a big part of my NUFC memories.

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  15. Juve taking Man U apart. Hit the bar, the post and Cudrado missed a sitter. Great goal from Ronaldo. Juve’s squad cost less, but of course Jose said they had more money an he couldn’t compete (bare faced lie).

    I usually like to see English teams win in Europe but make an exception for Jose and Man U.

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  16. Robbery, but Martin Tyler giving Mourinho credit even though they were outplayed. Surprised he hasn’t mentioned “that night in Barcelona” yet.

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  17. Looks like there is only one question left to answer about Saturday’s team – whether Rafa risks Lascelles or sticks with the team that finished against Watford? With Muto and Shelvey out that probably means a recall to the bench for Hayden and Murphy. This wouldn’t be a surprise as Rafa has a history of bringing in players from the cold – see Saivet. I doubt if they will play a part though. I doubt if it is permanent redemption either unless and until Rafa says they “have trained well”. I always think that is more about them listening to his instructions rather than running around or lifting weights.

    I watched Bournemouth/Man U and they were by far the better team in the first half but Mau U more than matched them in the second. They were also vulnerable on the counter and at the back so it is not a lost cause even though they are 6th.

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  18. kimtoon:
    Eric, I wish I had your faith .

    Kimtoon: there is not that much faith in saying something is not a lost cause 🙂

    I watched the Juve/Man U match yesterday and Juve probably should have won 7-1. Then you read reports in the British papers and they are commending Man U for a job well done. The post match over here had Tim Howard saying it was a “Mourinho masterclass”. He then amended that later on to saying it was only the result that mattered. I expect one of his producers got in his ear because this was one of the most one-sided games since that night in Barcelona when Bayern should have been out of sight. But the result and who got the cup is all that matters now.

    I don’t care if we only have 30% possession on Saturday and Bournemouth miss a sitter of Cuadrado proportions. All that matters is the result.

    I will start worrying about aesthetics once we have a few more points on the board and when there is not an international break to stew over everything if we lose.

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  19. I know I complained about our **** football a couple of weeks ago but we are desperate. When we are in this mess I want a win at any cost. I want us to get to January with some hope intact. Put the ball in Fatman’s court so he can crush our dreams again 🙂

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  20. An arbitrary list from website Planetfootball of 13 most liked PL footballers of all time. Funny that there are 4 Toon players on it. I am not sure if they would be able to name 4 Toon players at the moment 🙂

    You know, thinking about that. If I didn’t support NUFC I would probably get stuck after Shelvey. Maybe Lascelles, but that would be about it.

    https://www.planetfootball.com/quick-reads/13-liked-players-pl-history-zola-alonso-crouch/

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  21. Could I name 4 Bournemouth players? I watched them last week and I am still having trouble. Callum Wilson – he scored. I know they spent a lot on Jordan Ibe. They have the smallest player in the PL at 5-3 but I forgot his name. Very quick and caused Man U all sorts of problems. Does Nathan Ake play for them? I know he cost a lot of money from Chelsea.

    That’s it. But I can name their manager. He is still the youngest manager in the PL and I think he has been managing for more than a decade.

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  22. There were a few murmurs that maybe Welbeck might be worth a look. He has had a terrible time with injury and broke his ankle today.

    I still think we could get Llorente from Spurs. I think he is 32/33 but would be worth it to keep us up. Along with Shelvey and Ki we could have an even bigger Swansea connection.

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  23. georgio:
    Janmaat’s at Watford. Welbeck is the most over rated PL player of all time.

    Yeah,he hardly played 1st season so I got confused.

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  24. Unable to watch the game tomorrow but will be able to get radio coverage. After years of the BBC blocking Test Match Special I was able to get the Sri Lanka game on Talksport2 and they kept advertising that their Saturday PL was NUFC. I think I will give it a listen as “Ando” just gets me depressed on Radio Newcastle.

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  25. georgio: how about the other sicknote Sturridge? The Guardian are saying Klopp is getting fed up with him. That would be a big roll of the dice and I don’t know what they would want for him. If they want 20 million plus for Origi…

    I still wouldn’t buy Sturridge. Too much of a risk injury wise and a selfish player. Imagine if he missed a few sitters to lose us an important game?

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  26. So Paul Merson’s Giant Balloon Heed predicts a loss tomorrow and Uncle Ed is happy. His reasoning is that Merse predicted a loss last week and we won. I have news for you Ed. Merson doesn’t have a clue and you may as well draw the winners and losers out of a hat as follow him.

    Here’s a system they all should try. Predict the top 6 will win (apart from B’mouth because they are in a false position) and predict the bottom 6 will lose and they will be right more times than they are wrong. Do it every week.

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  27. LLorente’s contract is up in the summer and he stated midweek that he wanted to go back to La Liga. We should hijack that move. Give him a get-out clause that we will move him for a lower fee if relegated. I am sure he is more bothered about not playing than being in England. Realistically, he has one more 2 year deal and we could offer more than Bilbao.

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