W's In The Chat – Is This The Turning Point For Newcastle United?

As the wise William Osula repeatedly says... W's in the chat, cuh.

Newcastle United are back in the win column in the Premier League, and it feels good... Amazing, in fact, the hope is that the result can be the beginning of the Eddie Howe express finding its way back onto the metaphorical tracks that signify Premier League success... But with us, you just never quite know.

It's difficult to comprehend the duality of Newcastle, even as a fan. Two absolutely abysmal results pre-international break that had some, albeit slightly delusional, fans calling for Eddie Howe's head…

Followed by what can only be described as an absolutely monumental performance against the imperious Man City to win 2-1.

With both Forest and West Ham winning earlier in the day, it sounds mental to say out loud, but the looming abyss of the relegation zone was casting its depressive shadow over the evening's proceedings… And it felt, in some ways, like a must-win.

Yet, despite the anxiety-ridden 98-ish minutes, in which my club appeared hell-bent on sending me to A&E with a crippling heart attack, I sit here in my Manchester uni accommodation, with my City fan housemate in the next room (yeah, I've given him stick, don't worry), struggling to keep those dreamy thoughts that this could be the start of a turnaround from entering my head.

Can't wait for the inevitable 3-0 loss to Everton away from home next week to bring me right back down to earth…

Hall & Tino Stand On Business

I would feel like I'd done a disservice had I not begun this delightful article with a tribute to the dynamic duo that is Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento.

The role of the modern fullback is well documented, and even though most of us Geordies were well aware that a good chunk of our struggles came from the absence of the mentioned duo, I don't think anybody quite grasped how much we had missed them until yesterday.

I don't want to place too much slander on the stand-in pair of Kieran Trippier and Dan Burn, but when your right back is 35 years old and your left back is 6'7" in a side which heavily utilises high-intensity, attacking football – that doesn't bode massively well as a pairing.

And it's safe to say the difference between the two setups was night and day.

⚪️⚫️ Tell you what, how big a difference do Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento make?

👏 Two of the best players on the pitch in that first half and both offensively and defensively provide so much to the way Eddie Howe wants his side to play.

3️⃣ Especially Hall - after being out… pic.twitter.com/hvH3S3AgSV

— Andy Sixsmith (@andysixsmithtv) November 22, 2025

Both of the returning fullbacks were exceptional in every phase of play. The buildup phase was made infinitely easier by their energy and willingness and comfort in getting on the ball under pressure.

There were countless moments where the overlap/underlapping run either allowed Hall and Tino to create chances in those wide areas of their own accord or opened up the entire picture for those around them.

Defensively, against the extravagant technician Rayan Cherki and the raw pace and power of Jeremy Doku respectively, the two must have brought their shock collars for their opposing men because the City wingers didn't get a sniff and looked defeated from early.

Lewis Hall especially, alongside Harvey Barnes (who we'll talk about more later), was playing like the rent is due and is already staking his claim for the left-back starting spot at the World Cup next summer… Hope you're watching, Tommy.

Malick 'The Titan' Thiaw

Speaking of defensive performances… Malick Thiaw, the man that you are.

Thiaw disabled the Norwegian robot like it was as simple as removing the batteries from a Wii remote, put him in his back pocket (with some help from the returning Fabian Schar) and didn't let him out until the final whistle.

When Thiaw signed in the summer, Milan fans everywhere had the audacity to claim that they'd had Newcastle's pants down with the seemingly hefty £45m fee commanded for the centre back.

But, less than a few months later, and despite what Milan fans will still try to tell you, Newcastle have definitely got the better end of that deal.

I've said this before, and I'll say it again. Malik Thiaw has the potential to be one of the best central defenders in Europe; there's an argument to say he's not that far off being up there now… this season, of course.

Thiaw has quickly established himself as Newcastle's best defender, with his commanding aerial presence, his calmness on the ball and his all-round footballing IQ setting him apart from most in the league, never mind at the club.

Malick Thiaw is going straight to the top, putting the worlds best striker on his arse like it is nothing 🔥#NUFC

pic.twitter.com/kwlUwGVshj

— Adam Pearson (YT) ⚫️⚪️ (@AdamP1242) November 23, 2025

There was one moment of note, which may not seem like much, but really summed up the impact that Thiaw has had.

Erling Haaland had received the ball in space on the left-hand side of the box and found himself in a 1 vs 1 stand-off with Thiaw, with Nick Pope left exposed behind.

In that situation most other defenders would crumble at the sight of the ruthless Scandinavian bearing down with intent. But instead, Thiaw kept his composure, waited for the ball to be made vulnerable by Haaland, and expertly nicked it from the toes of his Nike Phantoms, leaving the big striker on the floor with a wry smile as he realised he'd been outdone on a rare occasion this season.

Ooh Harvey Barnes

Newcastle have been underwhelming at times, seemingly incompetent so far this season.

The two Anthonys (Gordon and Elanga) have been more Jedward than potent attacking duo this season and are both yet to register a single goal contribution in the Premier League.

The charger for Liverpool's iPhone (Alex Isak) in Jacob Murphy has once again proven his worth at points and has got juicy on a couple of occasions this season, but it hasn't been quite to the output needed just yet.

And, of course, big Nick Woltemade has been in fine form since joining the club, but his output can't be the only source of goals alone.

That's where Harvey McBarnes… Sorry… Barnes comes in.

"Harvey McBarnes, I like it" 😂

Harvey Barnes responds to being asked if he would be interested in playing for Scotland at the World Cup 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 pic.twitter.com/BRfAzQDzM2

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) November 22, 2025

Did he miss a couple of big chances? Yes.

But we shall ignore those, for obvious reasons.

Both goals were neatly finished off, both in a very different manner.

The first saw him finish off a training ground-type move in which he flicked the ball onto Bruno before continuing his run and stroking a delicious finish past the helpless Donnarumma into the bottom left-hand corner.

The second, just seven minutes after Newcastle's first and merely two minutes after City's equaliser, saw an instinctual back heel as the ball ricocheted off the bar following somewhat of a scramble in front of the eagerly awaiting Gallowgate end.

Barnes has been inundated with what I would describe as unwarranted criticism over the past weeks, given his struggles to massively impact games.

But quite often the work he does goes unnoticed. With Anthony Gordon's naturally noticeable playstyle, where he hares about the pitch, sometimes oversealously, when Barnes replaces him, he is often scrutinised for not being as apparent within the game.

In fact, he is merely asked to do a different job by Eddie Howe in Newcastle's press, which many don't realise.

On the attacking side of the game, he can frustrate given his lack of dynamicness in 1 vs 1 situations, but give the man a chance, and he can prove deadly.

The absences of Gordon this season have allowed for Barnes to play a string of games which have seen a spike in confidence, apparent on the pitch.

Add to that a much more cohesive performance than we have seen in recent weeks from the rest of the team, and Harvey Barnes really showed his class against City.

If you can get him playing at his best, I genuinely believe you could have a 10-15-goal-a-season winger in your hands, and who's to say we aren't seeing the beginnings of exactly that happening in recent weeks?

A Post-Break Coincidence, Or A Message To Eddie Howe?

Following an international break, it is always difficult to say exactly how a team will come back, and it's safe to say Newcastle needed a response after our previous shortcomings.

But I don't think any Newcastle fan believes it's a coincidence what we saw yesterday.

The mantra 'Intensity is our identity' has become one that Eddie Howe's side live and die by.

Every time we do the ‘is Eddie Howe still the right man for Newcastle??’ debate, he makes a lot of people look stupid #NUFC pic.twitter.com/TF1uBZpkcm

— Adam Clery (@AdamClery) November 22, 2025

So, naturally, when playing multiple games a week, as is the case with Champions League football in the calendar this season, it becomes difficult to keep that up without rotation.

And in the opinion of most, Howe's reluctance to really rotate and trust those not considered in the 'first XI' to do a job has been a bit of an issue.

The lack of depth has been debilitating for years, but with the summer business done, there is undoubtedly more quality to choose from.

And yes, there have been some injuries, but the XI has stayed largely the same for most of the season, with just one or two changes even in multiple game weeks.

So this big win against City should be an indicator of one thing: when the players have fresher legs, they perform to a much higher standard across the board.

With a midweek away in Marseille which could be a killer, followed by an away trip to Merseyside to face Everton next weekend, it's not going to be an easy week by any means.

But if managed right, there is a feeling that yesterday's result could be the beginning of a turnaround in Premier League fortunes for Newcastle United.