Newcastle 5 Sheff Utd 1: Blades RELEGATED as historically poor defence crumbles against rampant Toon
SHEFFIELD UNITED’S miserable season is finally over – but Alexander Isak’s could just be hotting up.
Fittingly, the blunt Blades were hammered once again to confirm relegation.
One of the worst sides to ever grace the Premier League, they were actually head and shoulders above Newcastle before imploding like only they can.
Having already conceded the most ever goals in a 38-game Prem campaign prior to this latest humiliation, another five makes it an embarrassing 97 goals shipped from 35 games – with Newcastle responsible for 13 of them!
Only Swindon, in 1993-94, have let in 100 – but they’ll almost certainly have company with three games remaining.
The scoreline flattered Newcastle, who were worryingly off the pace before romping it in the second half.
But in Isak they’ve got a striker in the best form of his life.
The Swede’s latest brace was his third double in six games, taking him to 19 for the campaign and just one behind Erling Haaland and Cole Palmer in the Golden Boot race.
With nine goals in his last seven league games, he’s been on the scoresheet in each of his last seven St James’ Park appearances, a record bettered only by Andrew Cole and Alan Shearer.
This was a must-win for Newcastle in their bid to pip Manchester United to sixth and a Europa League spot, moving to within one point of the Red Devils following their draw with Burnley.
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They could and should have been well behind before romping to victory while barely having to lift a finger in anger.
Sheffield United had to avoid defeat to stave off relegation being confirmed.
Battered from pillar to post throughout this horror campaign, how much fight did they have left?
The Championship beckons but after September’s 8-0 hammering in the reverse fixture, revenge was in the air early on.
And within five minutes the away supporters, having seen their sorry side pick up just one win on the road all season, were delirious.
A short corner was worked back to Gustavo Hamer, who took advantage of Newcastle’s sleeping defence to pick out Anel Ahmedhodzic at the back post to nod home.
If that was the wake-up call Toon needed, it had the opposite effect.
As the Blades fans chanted ‘How s**t must you be, we’re winning away’, their side had enough openings to streak ahead.
Alexander Isak dominated
Striker Cameron Archer butchered two great openings – and, as the Toon Army grew increasingly frustrated, deadly Isak struck to – temporarily at least – silence the grumbling.
Winger Jacob Murphy was getting a healthy dose of the dissent but his ball down the right-hand channel to the Swede was brilliant, with the in-form striker taking it in his stride and firing brilliantly first time into the far corner.
That’s usually the cue for the South Yorkshiremen to sink without a trace, but this time they refused to go under…for a while at least.
Granted, slow and ponderous Newcastle were still hopeless from front to back after the equaliser.
And they really should have gone into the break behind, only for Mason Holgate to head a sitter off the post before Andre Brooks lashed the rebound wide.
Sheffield United teen skipper Ollie Arblaster, 19, was running the show up against £100million-rated Bruno Guimaraes, while Anthony Gordon and Elliot Anderson hammered left-back Lewis Hall all half for the wrong pass here, not running on the overlap there.
Newcastle fight back
And while they hardly found their rhythm at the start of the second half, a simple set-piece converted by Bruno put Newcaste ahead 54 minutes in.
Gordon’s free-kick to the back post was inch-perfect and the Samba midfielder took advantage of some non-existent marking to score with a diving header.
The Geordies unfurled an impressive Brazilian themed tribute on the Gallowage before kick-off, and Bruno repaid them by hoisting the corner flag above him in celebration.
Mags keeper Martin Dubravka denied Ben Brereton Diaz at the other end, and it was game over moments later.
Holgate conceded a stonewall penalty on Gordon, with Isak doing the rest with a typically ice-cool finish.
The floodgates had opened and it soon turned messy again for Chris Wilder’s side when sub Callum WIlson, back from injury, fired his first Prem goal since October into the roof of the net.
