Alexander Isak scored twice as Newcastle United survived a late fightback to down fellow top-four hopefuls Nottingham Forest 4-3 in an enthralling Premier League contest.
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Callum Hudson-Odoi's eye-catching opener six minutes in silenced the St James' Park crowd, but Newcastle roared back emphatically with four goals in just 11 first-half minutes.
Lewis Miley restored parity before Jacob Murphy – who was at fault for Forest's opening goal – sent Eddie Howe's side ahead two minutes later.
Isak's stuttering penalty, awarded after a VAR review for a handball by Ola Aina, furthered Newcastle's lead before the Swedish striker netted another for his 50th Premier League goal to cap a chaotic turnaround.
Nikola Milenkovic's cute finish and a late Ryan Yates strike had Newcastle reeling but they held on to move fifth, just three points adrift of Forest, who could drop to fourth if Manchester City beat leaders Liverpool later on Sunday.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
27 | +38 | 64 |
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
26 | +28 | 53 |
| 3 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
26 | +11 | 47 |
| 4 |
Man City
MCI
|
26 | +15 | 44 |
| 5 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
26 | +10 | 44 |
How the match unfolded
Hudson-Odoi snatched possession from Murphy before arrowing a delightful right-footed strike home early on from range, though Miley equalised when latching onto Lewis Hall's cross and drilling past the unsighted Matz Sels to level after 23 minutes.
Murphy atoned for his earlier error by bundling over the line from point-blank range after Hall's attempted cutback pass was deflected by Murillo – and matters continued to go downhill for Forest.
Aina's arm was deemed to be in an unnatural position to block another Hall cross after a VAR review and Isak just sneaked his unconvincing penalty past Sels, despite the Forest goalkeeper getting a hand to the spot-kick down the middle.
Isak made it two goals in as many minutes when powering onto Joe Willock's pass, with his left-footed drive looping over the powerless Sels thanks to a Murillo deflection.
Milenkovic pulled a goal back for Forest to make it 4-2, flicking Chris Wood's cross-shot past Nick Pope in the 63rd minute before Newcastle just about held on for victory after Yates turned home Morgan Gibbs-White's blocked volley in the 90th minute.
Milestone-man Isak inspires Newcastle
Newcastle were way off the pace in their 4-0 hammering by Man City last time out and may have been fearing the worst after Hudson-Odoi's opener against the run of play.
The hosts could have levelled when Miley's volley was deflected wide by Murillo before Anthony Gordon narrowly missed Tino Livramento's fizzing cross.
Their deserved reward soon arrived, though, as Miley showed composure belying his youthful age to score before Murphy's instinctive positioning made amends for his earlier error.
Hall continued to enjoy his freedom down the left and again punished Forest when the VAR recommended an on-field review for Aina's handball, with Isak fortuitously finishing after referee Jarred Gillett overturned his original call.
The Swedish striker's second goal characterised his brilliant forward play, gliding in behind before crashing home for his 50th Premier League goal in just 76 appearances – only six players have hit the half-century mark faster in the competition.
Fabian Schar was denied by the crossbar after the interval, heading onto the woodwork from Hall's corner, though Howe will have just been relieved to survive waves of late Forest pressure for the victory.
This vital win sets Newcastle up nicely in their top-four pursuit before Wednesday's visit to leaders Liverpool.
Comeback task too great after uncharacteristic Forest collapse
Forest's brilliant start to this campaign leaves them controlling their top-four destiny, though following up the Fulham defeat with this loss to Newcastle will concern Nuno Espirito Santo.
The away side set out in their usual, well-drilled defensive formation, reaping the rewards as Hudson-Odoi again profited with a strike from outside the box.
However, Aina was then repeatedly exposed on their right, with little cover offered by Anthony Elanga and Nicolas Dominguez, as all four Newcastle goals started from that flank.
Elanga somehow smashed over after Neco Williams' headed back across goal in the second half, though Milenkovic's inventive finish placed Newcastle firmly on the ropes.
An unmarked Murillo then headed narrowly wide and Gibbs-White's cross almost caught Pope out before Yates poached from close range after Schar's block to set up a grandstand finish.
Forest wanted a last-gasp penalty after Gordon collided with Yates from behind, though referee Gillett waved away those protests as their first-half collapse ultimately proved too much to come back from.
Regardless of their second-half improvements, Nuno will be desperate for a response in Wednesday's home match with Arsenal, who are six points clear of Forest.
Club reports
Newcastle report | Nottingham Forest report
What the managers said
Eddie Howe: "I have to remind myself that we won the game and ultimately that's the most important thing. First half we were brilliant, outstanding, second half was a tough watch. But we got over the line and that's the main thing."
Nuno Espirito Santo: "Second half was better but unfortunately not enough. Too bad, too soon. It's about trying to settle down, calm down and try to be ourselves. In the first half I didn't recognise our team. In the second half we were much better.
"I wish there was 10 minutes added on. We needed that time. We were on top, Newcastle were on the ropes. With 10 minutes I think we can get something from this game."
Next PL fixtures
Key facts
Forest have lost three of their last four Premier League matches (W1), as many as their previous 16 beforehand (W11 D2 L3). They have lost three successive away games in the competition for the first time since December 2023.
Newcastle striker Isak scored his 49th and 50th Premier League goals, making him the highest-scoring Swedish player in the competition's history, overtaking Freddie Ljungberg (48). There were only 111 seconds between his first and second goals against Forest.
Newcastle have won 13 of their last 16 games in all competitions (L3); since the first match in this period on 14 December, this is the most wins by any Premier League side.
Miley's goal (aged 18) assisted by Hall (aged 20) was the first time Newcastle had a Premier League goal both scored and assisted by players aged 20 or younger since January 2007 against Manchester United, when David Edgar (19) was assisted by James Milner (20).
