Newcastle not intimidated in Aston Villa tunnel as Geordie taunts make mockery of ‘fortress’

Newcastle United players could not miss it. A gleaming replica of the European Cup was staring them in the face when they walked out of the away dressing room and down the steps of the tunnel at Villa Park before kick-off. It was a reminder of Aston Villa’s most glorious achievement, but rather than being intimidated, the visitors fittingly produced the kind of display that secured their own place in the Champions League last season.

On this evidence, you would have thought it was Newcastle who had an 11-point lead on Villa in fourth place – not the other way around. It is not an exaggeration to suggest that this 3-1 win may go down as one of the most impressive away performances in Eddie Howe’s reign.

After all, Villa had not lost a home game in the Premier League in nearly a year, while only basement boys Sheffield United had a worse record on the road than Newcastle, but the visitors refused to surrender in the Second City. Just ask Jacob Murphy. “There was big talk in the dressing room beforehand about how much of a fortress Villa Park was,” he said. “We had to come here and stamp our authority on the game.”

They did that, all right, on a night Geordies taunted: “Is this a library?” and “Shall we sing a song for you?” after their side quickly quietened the home support in this cauldron. “From the first minute we showed that we wanted to win the match,” Martin Dubravka added.

How? Well, fearless Newcastle pressed high from the off and repeatedly exploited Villa’s high line with their pace up front. As well as carrying that threat from open play, Fabian Schar landed a sucker punch from a corner kick after the half-hour mark against a side with one of the best set-piece coaches in the business in Austin MacPhee. The Newcastle defender followed that strike up with a second just four minutes later.

To think injury-hit Newcastle were soon without 10 first-team players after Alexander Isak hobbled off with a groin issue before half-time. However, even losing their record signing did not throw Newcastle off course with substitute Miguel Almiron setting up the visitors’ crucial third, after Alex Moreno put through his own net, when the momentum of the game could have shifted if Villa had scored the first goal of the second half.

In the end, Ollie Watkins’ late strike proved a mere consolation. By the time nine minutes of stoppage time were added on, a number of Villa fans had long headed for the exits.

Even Unai Emery could not help but admit that Villa were unable to ‘control the game like we wanted but it was because they were playing well and we had to accept that’. How often does Emery utter those words? Yet Howe, to his credit, has masterminded two mightily impressive victories over the serial trophy winner the 46-year-old once feared he had lost out to in the race to become Newcastle manager. This win was, arguably, even more impressive than the 5-1 hammering on the opening day.

“I look at that team tonight and the way we played and I think that’s an elite team,” Howe told TNT Sports. “A team that’s capable of achieving great things.”

To do so, seventh-placed Newcastle have to build on this – starting with the visit of Luton Town on Saturday – but when this side have confidence, rhythm and precious momentum, they are hard to stop and there is plenty of life left in this season if Tuesday night is anything to go by. That was clear from the get-go.

In fact, this was one of the more assured openings Newcastle had made on the road all season as the visitors sprayed diagonals down the flanks and played balls over the top for their rapid front line to run on to. Villa suddenly looked a little unsure.

Newcastle, in contrast, were growing in belief and Jacob Murphy’s clever ball in behind sent Anthony Gordon through in the 20th minute. Emi Martinez raced out of his goal and Gordon took a touch to take the ball away from the Villa goalkeeper before pulling the trigger – but the World Cup winner kept out his shot with his foot. The ball then came out to Isak, but the Sweden international’s curling effort went wide.

It was soon Villa’s turn to have their first effort on goal, as the game opened up, but Dubravka was equal to Matty Cash’s close-range shot in the 27th minute. Remarkably, it was as close as Villa came to scoring in the first half.

Newcastle began to turn the screw and Martinez spilled Murphy’s venomous effort on the half-hour mark before a superb sliding block from Clement Lenglet prevented Sean Longstaff knocking the ball in on the rebound. Then, just a couple of minutes later, Gordon cut inside and the forward’s shot was deflected over the top by Ezri Konsa. From the resulting corner, Newcastle took the lead when Schar beat Konsa to the punch to get on the end of Kieran Trippier’s delivery and volley the black-and-whites in front.

Villa were stunned, but it was about to get even worse for the hosts. There were 36 minutes on the clock when Gordon’s effort from the edge of the area took a wicked deflection and looped onto the crossbar and that man, Schar, was there to pounce with a poacher’s finish.

If no one saw that coming, well, the familiar sight of a key player hobbling off before half-time hardly came as a surprise when Isak headed straight down the tunnel. Almiron came on in Isak’s place, with Gordon moving inside, as Newcastle were left with no natural fit strikers.

However, that did not matter on Tuesday night. Far from losing their threat, Newcastle looked dangerous on the break as Villa poured forward in the second half and Almiron’s teasing cross picked out Murphy at the back post in the 52nd minute. Moreno slid in to try and keep out Murphy’s effort, but the Villa defender ended up taking the ball over the line.

It was not game over, though. Not quite. Schar got back to clear after Moussa Diaby rounded Dubravka on the hour mark and the Newcastle ‘keeper went on to make a fine save to push Cash’s shot away.

Villa finally pulled one back in the 71st minute when substitute Leon Bailey latched onto a searching ball over the top and the Jamaica star’s cross was turned in by Watkins. There was still time for Watkins to have another goal ruled out, but Newcastle managed to see the game out to claim a priceless win at Villa Park. You suspect it was worth the wait.