Huge Matthias Jaissle lift as Newcastle United manager after £53m duo blow Crystal Palace away
Newcastle United recovered from a lethargic first-half to put Crystal Palace to the sword in brutal fashion.
Are Newcastle United back? A ruthless second-half performance gave Matthias Jaissle’s men a 2-0 away win over Crystal Palace. Here are your five key takeaways from the match.
Huge Matthias Jaissle lift
After facing a media grilling on Friday and fan backlash online, Jaissle needed this. It appeared destined to be another limp display at the half-time interval.
Palace, until that point, had several half-chances and looked the most likely team to score. However, whatever the German fed his troops during the break clearly worked. Newcastle attacked the second period with intensity - and showcased a real ruthless streak.
At the time of writing, the victory lifts the Magpies up to seventh. As the away end burst into a chorus of “Jaissle, I Can Boogie” at full-time, it was hard not to feel happy for a manager who has been under the pump in recent weeks.
Storm Toon & hat-trick in the capital
Forget Leeds United, Coventry City and Aston Villa, Storm Boelo posed possibly the most difficult test yet to Jaissle’s “vertical football” style. Gale-force winds attacked Selhurst Park before, during and after today’s clash.
Could Newcastle lump it long under these conditions? They certainly tried during the opening phases. Ultimately, it was Newcastle who blew Crystal Palace away with precision and power.
Jaissle discussed the need to improve in both boxes ahead of the clash. Two goals and a clean sheet was the response. Shout-out to Nico Gonzalez too, who kept the play ticking over in the engine room. There can be zero complaints from a Newcastle perspective.
There was once a time - between 1997 and 2001 - when Newcastle did not win in London. Just like Tottenham Hotspur and Millwall already this season, Crystal Palace were putin to the sword in the capital.
The big smoke is now a happy hunting ground for the travelling Toon fans - and long may it continue. Better still, Newcastle travel to Fulham in their next Premier League away game.
First-choice striker
Cruelly robbed of the chance to lead Newcastle’s forward line, Osula certainly left his mark today. The Dane began the campaign as first-choice striker after six goals in nine games at the back end of 2024-25.
However, a foot injury on the opening day against Liverpool disrupted his momentum. Osula waited in the wings as his Toon teammates struggled to break teams down.
He got his chance today - and justified Jaissle’s pre-match call. The No.9 spot at St James’ Park is now his to lose.
Mr Clinical!
Barnes is in the team for one, critical reason: goals. There had been faint calls for the 28-year-old to face the chop after two ineffective displays against Aston Villa and Coventry City.
But when assessing the Newcastle squad, who else is a genuine, out-and-out scorer? In many ways, he typified the team’s performance.
Quiet in the first half, devastatingly clinical in the second. Barnes took his goal brilliantly from Amar Dedic’s cross to put Jaissle’s men in dreamland.
Veteran duo send reminder
Jaissle tore up his side from the one that lost 1-0 to Aston Villa a week ago. Perhaps the most ballsy decision was to start Fabian Schar and Dan Burn in defence.
The call was justified - but also raises eyebrows. Schar and Burn were Newcastle’s defensive partnership when battling to stay in the league… five years ago.
To their credit, Jaissle got this bang on. The two know each other inside out and Burn dealt with Jean-Philippe Mateta well. Like Osula in attack, this is now United’s first-choice defensive duo.
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