Newcastle 2-0 Burnley: Eddie Howe’s side continue bright form ahead of Champions League showdown with PSG thanks to Miguel Almiron and Alexander Isak goals

• Miguel Almiron opened the scoring inside 14 minutes with a stunning strike 
• Alexander Isak converted a penalty late on after Anthony Gordon was fouled 
• Eddie Howe’s side have now won three on the bounce and face PSG in midweek 

You cannot play Sheffield United every week, but it helps when Burnley are next up. There are some games you have to win without scoring eight. And while Newcastle made heavy work of the two they netted here, it was always going to be enough against the Premier League’s most insipid attack.

Eddie Howe’s side had to exert more energy than he would have liked with Paris Saint-Germain to come on Wednesday, and those Castore kits certainly weighed heavy come full-time.

But a third straight league victory – on the back of three straight defeats – leaves them on solid ground after a shaky start. By way of mitigation, those three losses came against the teams occupying the top three positions ahead of this weekend’s fixtures.

This was also a fifth consecutive clean sheet in all competitions, although that comes with an asterisk versus Vincent Kompany’s Burnley.

Newcastle started like they had done at Sheffield United last Sunday – slow and on the back foot. They won that game 8-0, of course. You can, then, afford to be laboured early on, if the opponent is so blunt in attack. 

Newcastle continued their recent bright form with a comfortable 2- win over Burnley home 

Miguel Almiron opened the scoring inside 14 minutes with a stunning strike into the top corner

Alexander Isak doubled Newcastle’s lead late in the game from the penalty spot 

Sheffield missed a couple of good openings and so, too, did Burnley. Swiss striker Zeki Amdouni fired straight at Nick Pope when in the clear after just four minutes.

The Clarets, goes popular opinion, are an offensive side who play the right way. What’s wrong is that they cannot score. They have the fewest goals in the Premier League – just four from six games now – and the lowest XG. Ten pretty passes may win you a point in training, but it counts for nothing on a Saturday.

MATCH FACTS  

Newcastle: Pope, Trippier, Lascelles, Schar, Burn, Longstaff, Guimaraes, Anderson, Almiron, Gordon Isak 

Subs: Dubravka, Dummett, Joelinton, Tonali, Ritchie, Targett, Hall, Livramento, Murphy 

Booked: Gordon

Goals: Gordon, Isak

Burnley: Trafford, ROberts, Al-Dakhil, Beyer, Taylor, Cullen, Berge, Koleosho, Brownhill, Ramsey, Amdouni 

Subs: Rodriguez, Larsen, O’Shea, Cork, Zaroury, Vitinho, Ndayishimiye, Odobert, Muric

Booked: Beyer, Taylor, Amdouni  

What do count are 25-yard curlers sent for the top corner. And that is what Miguel Almiron did, against the run of play, on 14 minutes. 

Burnley’s Aaron Ramsey wanted too long in gathering his thoughts midway inside his own half and we will never know what he had planned. Kieran Trippier picked the pocket of the midfielder and, from the loose ball, Almiron picked out the top corner.

A warning for Newcastle – you can start like that against Burnley, you cannot against PSG and Kylian Mbappe.

The hosts should have put the result to bed by half-time. Alexander Isak hit goalkeeper James Trafford when sent clear by Bruno Guimaraes and followed up to hook wide from the rebound. Trafford then saved Elliot Anderson’s diving header and snaffled the same player’s low drive just before the break.

But Isak had his goal on 76 minutes, settling home nerves with a nerveless penalty after Ameen Al-Dakhil slid and tripped Anthony Gordon. The remainder was a formality, although it should have been long before now.

Kompany never lost to Newcastle as a player. That, though, was with Manchester City and team-mates like Sergio Aguero. Even the retired Argentine might have done more with the early chance spurned by Amdouni, for a goal then could have changed the course of the contest, given the home side were far from their best.

Burnley, ironically, are only being kept off bottom by the goals Newcastle scored at Bramall Lane. They will have to find a few of their own if they are to climb any higher.

Burnley remain in the relegation zone and without a win after their latest defeat on Saturday

A dejected Clarets boss Vincent Kompany looks on as his suffer yet another defeat 

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