Premier League:
Non-event
Fulham 2 Newcastle 0
United's epic season finally ground to a halt at Craven
Cottage on Sunday with a disinterested and directionless display
sadly summing up much of the last nine months.
A goal in each half by a Fulham side who didn't need to overly exert
themselves to collect three points saw the Magpies finish twelfth in
the Premier League, their lowest position since the 2020/21
campaign.
The longest season on record concluded on the hottest matchday in
living memory, Eddie Howe's players having more drinks breaks than
goal attempts as time passed without any hint that a football match
might break out.
The hosts were ahead in 20 minutes after Nick Pope was unable to
prevent Issa Diop nodding home after Kevin's free kick rebounded
back off the Putney End crossbar.
Aside from one Joe Willock effort blocked by Bernd Leno and a timely
intervention from Timothy Castagne to prevent Lewis Hall reaching
Jacob Murphy's cross, the blue-clad visitors offered absolutely
nothing as an attacking unit.
The Cottagers shook off their own slumbers to double their advantage
with 10 minutes of the second half remaining, substitute Tom
Cairney's fine finish from distance aided by United's collective
inability to offer any resistance.
Sandro Tonali featured in the warm-up but was replaced by Willock in
the starting line-up, while both Anthony Gordon and Kieran Trippier
remained unused on the bench.
Those on show contributed little and somehow managed to be even more
ineffective in the second half after Harvey Barnes, Anthony Elanga
and Yoane Wissa sauntered on.
On wearside meanwhile, the mackems clinched a Europa League place -
aided by the generous donation of six points from Barrack Road, on
another two occasions this season when we couldn't be bothered to
show up.
On the banks of the Thames, Eddie Howe's also-rans fulfilled a
fixture rendered meaningless by their inability to compete in the
most mundane of Premier League seasons.
The abiding emotion at full time was one of relief, coupled with a
genuine apprehension about the direction of a team who look
collectively clueless far too often for comfort.
A season wholly comprised of domestic games may prove to be crucial
in what needs to be sizeable squad overhaul: adding another chunk of
European ties to the workload of this lot really could have
unimaginable consequences.
More to follow
Team:
Pope, Hall, Thiaw, Botman, Burn (A.Murphy 84), Guimaraes (Elanga
66), Willock, J.Murphy (Barnes 46), Woltemade (Neave 77), Ramsey,
Osula (Wissa 66).
Subs n/u: Ramsdale, Ruddy, Trippier, Gordon.
Booked: Guimaraes, Wissa.
FFC: Leno, Castagne, Diop (Cuenca 87), Bassey, Robinson,
Berge, Iwobi, Bobb (Wilson 72), Smith Rowe (King 72), Kevin (Cairney
60), Rodrigo Muniz (Jimenez 72).
Subs n/u: Lecombe, Reed, Sessegnon, Tete.
Booked: Robinson, Cuenca.
Goals: Diop 20, Cairney 80.
Crowd: 27,442 including 2,701 away fans.
Referee: Rob Jones - fourth Magpie match of the season for
the scouser, following on the 0-0 draw at
Bournemouth, 1-3 loss at West Ham and 3-1 win at Burnley.
VAR: James Bell
Eddie Howe said:
“Disappointing performance, not the way we wanted to end the
season, that's for sure. I think there was a disjointed view about
the team today, in part, we had really limited selection choices
today.
"I think it's been a really difficult season: a number of
fronts, a number of games were played, obviously the focus came from
Europe and the Premier League, that's always a challenge.
“We haven't dealt with that really well enough in our Premier
League season.”
Stats:
Having previously featured in the Champions League this season,
Sean Neave made his Premier League debut. He becomes the
276th different player to represent the club in that competition
and the 113th to be English-born.
Newcastle scored 17 times in their 19 PL away games this season, less than half of their 2023/24 total of 36
and significantly inferior to last season's tally of 28.
That total of 17 was the fewest since the 2015/16 relegation season when they scraped
up to 12.
19 PL fixtures away from SJP harvested 17 points, via four
wins and five draws. That compares unfavourably with last season's
final total of 28 points.
Magpies @ Fulham - PL era:
2025/26 Lost 0-2
2024/25 Lost 1-3 Barnes
2023/24 Won 1-0 Guimaraes
2023/24 Won 2-0 Longstaff, Burn (FAC)
2022/23 Won 4-1 Wilson, Almiron 2, S.Longstaff
2020/21 Won 2-0 Willock, Schar (pen)
2018/19 Won 4-0 Shelvey, Perez, Schar, Rondon
2016/17 Lost 0-1 (Ch)
2013/14 Lost 0-1
2012/13 Lost 1-2 Ben Arfa
2011/12 Lost 2-5 Guthrie, Ben Arfa
2010/11 Lost 0-1
2008/09 Lost 1-2 Ameobi
2007/08 Won 1-0 Barton (pen)
2006/07 Lost 1-2 Martins
2005/06 Lost 0-1
2004/05 Won 3-1 Ambrose, Kluivert, Ameobi
2003/04 Won 3-2 Robert, Shearer 2*
2002/03 Lost 1-2 Shearer*
2001/02 Lost 1-3 Speed
(At Craven Cottage except *Loftus Road)
NUFC final away game results - PL:
2025/26 Lost 0-2 at Fulham
2024/25 Lost 0-1 at Arsenal
2023/24 Won 4-2 at Brentford
2022/23 Drew 1-1 at Chelsea
2021/22 Won 2-1 at Burnley
2020/21 Won 2-0 at Fulham
2019/20 Drew 0-0 at Brighton
2018/19 Won 4-0 at Fulham
2017/18 Lost 0-1 at Spurs
2015/16 Drew 0-0 at Aston Villa
2014/15 Lost 1-2 at QPR
2013/14 Lost 1-2 at Liverpool
2012/13 Won 2-1 at QPR
2011/12 Lost 1-3 at Everton
2010/11 Drew 2-2 at Chelsea
2008/09 Lost 0-1 at Aston Villa
2007/08 Lost 1-3 at Everton
2006/07 Drew 1-1 at Watford
2005/06 Drew 0-0 at Birmingham City
2004/05 Lost 0-2 at Everton
2003/04 Drew 1-1 at Liverpool
2002/03 Drew 2-2 at West Bromwich Albion
2001/02 Lost 1-3 at Southampton
2000/01 Lost 0-3 at Liverpool
1999/00 Drew 0-0 at Derby County
1998/99 Lost 0-2 at Leicester City
1997/98 Lost 0-1 at Blackburn Rovers
1996/97 Drew 0-0 at Manchester United
1995/96 Drew 1-1 at Nottingham Forest
1994/95 Lost 0-1 at Blackburn Rovers
1993/94 Lost 0-2 at Sheffield United
Latest PL results:
Sun 24.05.2026:
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-3 Manchester United
Burnley 1-1 Wolves
Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal
Fulham 2-0 Newcastle
Liverpool 1-1 Brentford
Manchester City 1-2 Aston Villa
Nottingham Forest 1-1 Bournemouth
mackems 2-1 Chelsea
Spurs 1-0 Everton
West Ham United 3-0 Leeds United
Three points for Spurs ensures that West Ham will join
Burnley and Wolves in the Championship next season.
Championship:
What lies beneath
Hull City defeated
Middlesbrough 1-0 in the Championship playoff Final at Wembley on
Saturday, Ollie McBurnie's added-time effort meaning that the Tigers
join Coventry City and
Ipswich Town in the Premier League next season.
Here's a recent history of NUFC visits to the three sides:
Coventry City (last faced in the PL 2000/01)
The Sky Blues have moved from Highfield Road since our most recent
top-flight visit, a 2-0 win in September 2000 thanks to goals from
Alan Shearer and Kevin Gallacher.
The CBS Arena will become the 62nd different venue to host Newcastle
in the PL and they have a 100% record from their two previous visits
in other competitions: a 3-2 League Cup win in 2008 and a 4-1
Championship victory in 2009/10.
Ipswich Town (last faced in the PL 2024/25)
United return to Portman Road after a one season absence, having
scored four goals without reply there in late 2024 - Jacob Murphy
getting one and some Swede the rest.
Hull City (last faced in the PL 2014/15)
A 3-0 victory in January 2015 gave John Carver a first PL win as
interim boss, Remy Cabella, Sammy Ameobi and Yoan Gouffran all
finding the net against Steve Bruce's Tigers.
The Magpies returned under Rafa Benitez to draw 1-1 in the Carabao
Cup Quarter-final during November 2016 before exiting on penalties
in ham-fisted style - missing all but one of the four spot kicks
they took.
Newcastle's most recent game at the MKM Stadium was a friendly in
2024, winning 2-0. That was their fourth pre-season visit after
kickabouts in 2003, 2007 and 2018.
Internationals:
Toon in the USA
Eight Magpies have been selected for World Cup Final duty in
this summer, with warm-up games as follows:
Dan Burn, Anthony Gordon, Tino Livramento (England):
Sat 06.06.2026 New Zealand (n) Tampa FR
Wed 10.06.2026 Costa Rica (n) Orlando FR
Malick Thiaw, Nick Woltemade (Germany):
Sun 31.05.2026 Finland (h) Mainz FR
Sat 06.06.2026 USA (a) Chicago FR
Bruno Guimaraes (Brazil):
Sun 31.05.2026 Panama (h) Rio de Janeiro FR
Sat 06.06.2026 Egypt (n) Cleveland FR
Anthony Elanga
(Sweden):
Mon 01.06.2026 Norway (a) Oslo
FR
Thu 04.06.2026 Greece (h) Stockholm FR
Yoane
Wissa (DR Congo):
Wed 03.06.2026 Denmark (n) Liege
FR
Tue 09.06.2026 Chile (n) La Línea de la Concepcion FR
Others:
Rory Finneran
(Ireland):
Sat 16.05.2026 Grenada
(n) won 5-0 FR
The 18 year-old midfielder came off the bench in the 74th minute for
his first senior international appearance, with Ireland 3-0 ahead at
the home of Spaniards Real Murcia.
Alex Murphy (Ireland):
Thu 28.05.2026 Qatar (h) Dublin FR
Sat 06.06.2026 Canada (a) Montreal FR
A maiden senior selection for the Newcastle defender.
Aaron Epia (Poland U18s):
The Newcastle defender is part of the squad selected for a
training camp between 01.06.2026 and 04.06.2026.
Player tbc (if any) (Italy):
Wed 03.06.2026 Luxembourg (a) Luxembourg
FR
Sun 07.06.2026 Greece (a) Crete FR
Player tbc (if any) (Denmark):
Wed 03.06.2026 DR Congo (n) Liege
FR
Sun 07.06.2026 Ukraine (h) Odense FR
Update:
Schar set to stay
Speaking to the media on
Friday, Eddie Howe confirmed that a contract extension is in
the offing for defender Fabian Schar, who is set to become a
free agent this summer.
The 34 year-old former Swiss international made the last of his 251
league and cup appearances against Leeds United last January. Having
recovered from an ankle injury, he's currently recuperating after an
operation on his foot.
2026/27:
More Murrayfield talk
Update: speaking to the
media on Friday, Eddie Howe confirmed that pre-season will begin on
July 13th and include a training camp in the Spanish resort of La
Manga.
Earlier: Wednesday brought further claims of
a pre-season fixture between Newcastle and Everton at Edinburgh's Murrayfield
Stadium, possibly on Wednesday August 12th.
A game on that date appeared on the Ticketmaster website before the
linked page was taken down - neither club have confirmed the fixture
as yet.
A pair of home friendlies over the weekend of August 15th/16th is
anticipated, with Serie A side AS Roma and French League Strasbourg
among rumoured opponents.
Update:
Saudis seek partners
Following reports by Reuters news that PIF were in talks to dilute
its stake in Newcastle United, The Times claiming that up
to 25% of their shareholding is in line to be sold.
They write that it "is seen as key in an attempt to get equity
into the club before the announcement of a proposed £200m training
ground at Woolsington and further talks on a possible new stadium
that could cost more than £1bn."
The Times calculate that selling that shareholding could
raise £300m+, based on the club's claimed value of £1.5bn and that
the investment would be crucial to help fund either a redevelopment
of St. James' Park or a brand new stadium.
Update:
Loan lads
Travis Hernes (Groningen):
Thursday saw Groningen's Eredivisie season end with a failure to
secure a place in the Conference League.
A 0-2 defeat by Ajax in the one-off playoff semi-final saw Travis
play 67 minutes in right midfield, substituted with his team
trailing 0-2, which is how it ended.
Matt Targett (Middlesbrough):
No fairytale ending for Matt on Saturday, part of the Boro side
beaten at Wembley by Hull City in the Championship playoff Final at Wembley Stadium.
Odysseas Vlachodimos (Seville):
Despite a 0-1 loss at
Celta Vigo on Saturday,
Seville were able to preserve their place in La Liga, finishing 13th.
Although there's no provision in the loan deal, it's claimed by
Spanish media outlets that Seville now will seek to sign the
goalkeeper permanently after avoiding relegation.
Antonio Cordero (Cadiz)
Leganes (h) La Liga 2, Sunday.
With two games left, Cadiz sit fourth bottom of the table - three
points ahead of third bottom side Huesca.
Leganes are one place and three points ahead of them but with a
vastly superior goal difference.
Trevan Sanusi (Lorient):
Leganes (h)
Ligue 1, Sunday.
Update:
Leazes Terrace latest
From NUFC, Tuesday:
Newcastle United has completed the purchase of a significant
portion of the historic Leazes Terrace building next to St.
James' Park (for a claimed £25m).
The acquisition of a substantial majority of the Grade I
listed structure includes its northern, southern and western
elevations – including all areas facing the stadium.
It also includes most of its eastern elevation, with a small
block of private residences remaining in this part of the building.
This strategic purchase is part of the club's long-term
planning as it continues to assess all credible and feasible options
for the future of its home stadium.
It provides Newcastle United with greater flexibility and
ensures any future decisions support the club's ambitions, as well
as its responsibilities to the local community and the city of
Newcastle upon Tyne.
The club recognises the building’s historic and architectural
significance and is committed to its preservation.
There are no plans to change the current use of Leazes
Terrace, which is currently let for student accommodation, and the
club will retain the building’s existing property management
operator.
The investment to purchase Leazes Terrace does not impact the
club's football trading position.
This will doubtless fuel speculation that a
redeveloped SJP including an enlarged East Stand could be in the
offing, as opposed to a new stadium built elsewhere.
As stated in the press release though, it's only a part purchase and
the building retains Grade 1 listed status, which remains a
significant barrier to redevelopment regardless of who owns it.
It may be more realistic to see this in the context of the land
acquisition around Strawberry Place; a strategic move
future-proofing an area bordering SJP for PIF, regardless of whether
the football club remain there in the future.
Premier League:
Where there's a
Will....
Newcastle 3 West Ham 1
Match report
Match action
Compo:
Badge winners
The latest release from Toon badge specialist Magpin
depicts German international defender Malick Thiaw -
available online
here
now for immediate delivery.
We had a couple to give away and asked you to predict the full time score against West Ham on Sunday.
From the entries received, 24 were correct, meaning that a random
draw was required to pick the winners, who are:
Steve Dixon
Bill Minto
1946
BK Kenty (Sweden) (a)
1947
Sheffield Wednesday (a) 1-1 (0-1)
1949
Ontario All Stars (Canada) (a)
1952
Natal (a)
1970
Seattle Seatac (USA) (a) 2-1 (1-1)
1977
Everton (a)
2009
Aston Villa (a)
