What Yasir Al-Rumayyan didn't do in Newcastle dressing room as Liverpool face stadium nightmare

Yasir Al-Rumayyan will have been looking forward to seeing some of Newcastle United's mid-season signings play in the flesh for the first time against Crystal Palace on Wednesday night. However, it was a one-time record buy from a different era who offered a timely reminder to the Magpies' non-executive chairman that he could still have a part to play in the club's future during the 1-0 win.

It was Miguel Almiron, of course, who stepped up with the only goal of the game after finishing expertly into the top corner after the half-hour mark. It was Almiron's first Newcastle goal since February, 2021 and you could tell it meant a lot to the Paraguay international as he whipped off his shirt and jumped into the crowd to celebrate with supporters at St James' Park.

Almiron has had to be patient to get a run in the side under Eddie Howe, but the 28-year-old has been playing with newfound belief ever since he came on for the injured Ryan Fraser against Wolves earlier this month. Perhaps, most strikingly, Almiron has fire in his belly again and the forward even squared up to Wilfried Zaha a matter of seconds before his well-taken strike.

Was it any wonder that Almiron was given a standing ovation when he was later taken off? This was another priceless win - Newcastle's sixth in a row at home - as Eddie Howe's side moved level on points with 10th-placed Brighton. Newcastle have now hit the 40 points mark with five games to spare and only Liverpool have picked up more points in 2022.

That felt an unimaginable prospect when Al-Rumayyan last jetted in for a game at St James' back in January when Newcastle were knocked out of the FA Cup by League One outfit Cambridge United. Newcastle's standing in the Premier League table was not