Newcastle United secured an emphatic 3-0 victory over Aston Villa in Thursday’s Premier League clash, with goals from Anthony Gordon, Alexander Isak, and Joelinton.
The defeat marked Villa’s fifth consecutive away loss, further compounded by the dismissal of Jhon Duran.
The win, Newcastle’s last home fixture of the year, propelled Eddie Howe’s side to fifth place in the league standings with 29 points, while Villa slipped to ninth, just a point behind the Magpies.
This triumph also extended Newcastle’s winning streak to four across all competitions, three of which have come in the league, as they continue their pursuit of a top-four finish and a Champions League return.
The hosts wasted no time asserting dominance, opening the scoring in the second minute.
A quick recovery in midfield allowed Joelinton to find Gordon on the left. The English winger unleashed a sublime curled effort into the top corner, leaving Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez helpless.
As the visitors pushed for an equaliser, the match turned increasingly physical, with fouls disrupting the flow of play.
Despite testing Newcastle’s goalkeeper Martin Dubravka on occasion, Villa’s fortunes nosedived in the 32nd minute when Jhon Duran saw red.
After a tackle involving Fabian Schar, the Colombian forward stamped on Schar’s leg and back, earning an immediate dismissal. His frustration boiled over as he kicked a water bottle before storming down the tunnel.
Newcastle capitalised on their numerical advantage in the 59th minute. Bruno Guimaraes threaded a precise pass to Jacob Murphy, who squared the ball for Isak to score his 24th goal of the calendar year with a simple finish.
Moments later, the Magpies came close to adding a third, but Martinez’s reflexes denied Joelinton, and Murphy’s follow-up effort rattled the crossbar.
Unai Emery’s triple substitution failed to shift the momentum, and Newcastle sealed the win in stoppage time.
Joelinton intercepted the ball in midfield, surged forward unchallenged, and unleashed a thunderous strike from the edge of the box into the top corner, delivering a fitting end to a dominant performance.
