Alexander Isak scored a brace, including a stoppage-time penalty, to inspire Newcastle United to a 2-1 turnaround win at Nottingham Forest in the first fixture of Matchweek 28.
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Newcastle had fallen behind in the 26th minute when Emmanuel Dennis scored in his first start since November, capitalising on a poor Sven Botman back-pass and dinking over Nick Pope and two defenders.
The visitors had already hit the woodwork twice before Isak audaciously volleyed in an equaliser from Joe Willock's cross in first-half added time.
It looked like it would not be Newcastle's night after Elliot Anderson was denied a first Premier League goal when his header was overturned following a VAR review because of an offside in the build-up.
But in the third minute of stoppage time, Moussa Niakhate handled the ball in his own area and Isak converted the resultant penalty.
Back-to-back wins keep Newcastle in fifth, with 47 points, but they are just a point behind fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, whom they have a match in hand over.
A first home defeat since September leaves Forest in 14th on 26 points, only two above the relegation zone having failed to win in seven matches.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 |
Man Utd
MUN
|
38 | +15 | 75 |
| 4 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
38 | +35 | 71 |
| 5 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
38 | +28 | 67 |
| 6 |
Brighton
BHA
|
38 | +19 | 62 |
| 7 |
Aston Villa
AVL
|
38 | +5 | 61 |
| 8 |
Spurs
TOT
|
38 | +7 | 60 |
Saturday action
There are five more matches on Saturday involving teams at both ends of the table.
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Spurs can respond to Newcastle's win and take advantage of FA Cup quarter-finalists Manchester United having no Premier League fixture this weekend by leapfrogging them into third place with a win at Southampton.
AFC Bournemouth will aim to move out of the bottom three with a second successive win. They travel to Aston Villa, whom they have beaten four times in a row in the Premier League.
Wolverhampton Wanderers and Leeds United go head-to-head in a big match between relegation rivals, before the day comes to a close with Chelsea hosting Everton looking to continue their revival of form.
