Newcastle seal Champions League spot with Leicester draw

Nick Pope ensured Newcastle booked their Champions League place with a game to spare as he denied Leicester a priceless victory in their bid for Premier League survival. The Magpies' £10million summer signing kept out Timothy Castagne's volley in the second minute of stoppage time with his first save of the game to secure a 0-0 draw on a night when the home side battered at the door but were unable to find a way through.

Callum Wilson and Miguel Almiron were both denied by the woodwork, but a point was all their team needed to ensure their place among the continent's big boys for the first time in 20 years. By contrast, Leicester, who are still two points adrift of safety, will head into their final-day clash with West Ham knowing their fate is not in their own hands.

Eddie Howe's men were lauded by a crowd of 52,152 on the final whistle, having secured Champions League football for just the third time in the club's history and way ahead of the schedule drawn up by the club's Saudi-backed owners when they took control in October 2021. In some senses it proved to be a frustrating 90 minutes - it might have been more so had key midfielder Bruno Guimaraes seen red rather than yellow for a poor early challenge of Boubakary Soumare - but it was ultimately the bigger picture which mattered.

Howe was forced to make a last-minute change when, after he had taken part in the warm-up, midfielder Joelinton was unable to start and was replaced by Elliot Anderson. Any fears the reshuffle might unsettle his team proved unfounded as they took the game by the scruff of the neck amid a party atmosphere at St James' Park, although Guimaraes was perhaps fortunate to escape with only a booking for his studs-up ninth-minute clash with