One 9/10, three 8s, several 7s and a few 6s - Newcastle player ratings vs Brentford

Newcastle have done their bit when it comes to European qualification. A Chelsea defeat was always unlikely, but if Manchester City win the FA Cup, we will be in the Europa Conference League. It was an eventful game in London, as we ran out 4-2 winners at Brentford. Below, we rate the performance of each player.

Nick Pope 7.5 - It was great to see Nick Pope back between the sticks. Understandably there was some ring rust, but he couldn’t do a lot for either goal. He made a couple of excellent saves, including one from an Ivan Toney header. The defence also looked more assured with him in the net.

Emil Krafth 6 - The Swede kept his place and played in his favoured right back role. It was a solid performance, but it wasn’t anything spectacular. He has proven his worth to the squad in recent weeks.

Fabian Schar 7 - The defence looked a lot better with Schar back in the team. On the ball, he was as good as ever and although he struggled against Toney, it was useful to have him back in the eleven.

Dan Burn 7 - Like Schar, he was solid. To concede two more goals was a disappointment, but the defence played their role in the victory.

Lewis Hall 8 - The standout player in recent weeks has arguably been Lewis Hall. He was excellent again, especially in the attacking half of the pitch. We were under pressure at 3-2, but he took responsibility with a forward run and won the free kick that led to the clinching goal.

Sean Longstaff 7 - in the first half, he nearly got on the scoresheet, but an earlier offside led to it being ruled out. Longstaff looked better with better players around him. A decent final day display.

Bruno Guimaraes 9 - Hopefully it wasn’t his final game for Newcastle. He was very good, as he got two assists and a goal. The cross for Harvey Barnes was excellent and underlined his quality.

Joelinton 8 - Another returnee to the starting eleven was Joelinton. He looked very good and reminded the world of his destructive abilities. A number of ball recoveries led to us being put into promising attacking situations. A disappointing miss at 0-0 can be forgiven.

Murphy 7 - One of the players to be criticised recently has been Jacob Murphy. He has his limitations, but he is a good squad player capable of contributing in the final third. He scored to mark a good weekend for his family and ends the season with seven assists in 21 Premier League appearances.

Alexander Isak 8.5 - It was a much better performance from the striker, as he got a goal and an assist. On another day, he could have got more as he had plenty of chances.

Harvey Barnes 7 - After a quiet period, it was great to see Harvey Barnes back on the scoresheet. It was a well taken header and it led to us getting into a good match state, with the first goal so key to settle us down.

SUBS:

Elliot Anderson 6 - Came on and helped us see the game out. A few tactical fouls and put himself about.

Miguel Almiron 6 - Like Anderson, he helped us see the game out.

Kieran Trippier and Callum Wilson - N/A