Alexander Isaac said Newcastle are confident they will seal their place in next season’s Champions League as the Swede scored twice, including penalties in stoppage time, in a 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest on Friday. The victory brought the Magpies within one point of fourth-placed Tottenham, who are a game away. “We believed and we knew we took it into our hands and had a good chance,” Isaac said after his international break with back-to-back wins at Newcastle.
“The important thing is that we have two wins in two games and feel good.”
The defeat, Forest’s first at home in the league since September, leaves Steve Cooper’s side still two points above the relegation zone. “It’s always the worst way to lose in the last few minutes of a game,” Cooper said. “We made some poor football decisions in front of goal and we only have ourselves to blame.”
Newcastle ended their nearly two-month wait for a Premier League victory with a win over Wolves last weekend and flew out of the city’s stadium blocks.But the visitors came closest to turning their early dominance into the lead hot south Lodi turned Isak’s cross onto his own crossbar.
Instead, Forest was well ahead of the game thanks to a roar from Sven Botman.The Dutch centre-back has been a major factor in Newcastle’s success this season, but he has tried to pass the ball back to the goalkeeper Nick Pope Intercepted by Emmanuel Dennis, he produced a stunning break for Forest’s second goal.
The crossbar again saved the hosts when Sean Longstaff shot wide from the edge of the box.
Newcastle finally paid off in first-half stoppage time when club record signing Isaac juggled Joe Willock’s cross past the post.
After the intermission, the game continued, and the Magpies besieged the Forest team’s goal.Former Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Kyle Navas Had to go all out to get rid of Elliot’s powerful drive Anderson and Bruno Guimaraes.
Anderson then thought he headed Isaac’s cross at the back post for his first senior goal. However, the goal was disallowed after a VAR check that Longstaff was offside despite the Forest player passing the ball to the midfielder.
Just when Forest looked ready to score a valuable point in their battle, Moussa Niakhate unnecessarily raised her hand to block Isak’s header.
The Sweden international’s debut season in England was marred by injuries but he showed his class, keeping his header past Keylor Navas and sparking wild celebrations among the away supporters.
“It was a huge win and I think we deserved it,” Howe said. “Coming back is always a good way to win and the character shown in the team is very likable.”
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