Willock and Wilson stun Manchester United to fire Newcastle to crucial win

Erik ten Hag has described Newcastle United as “annoying” for some time now but Manchester United’s manager did not perhaps bargain on Eddie Howe’s side becoming much more than a nuisance quite so quickly.

Confirmation that Newcastle are now serious rivals when it comes to the all important matter of Champions League qualification arrived as second-half goals from the excellent Joe Willock and the substitute Callum Wilson helped Howe’s team leapfrog their guests as they rose to third in the Premier League. Granted Manchester United are level on points but their goal difference is distinctly inferior.

If Howe enjoyed watching his players exert revenge for February’s Carabao Cup final defeat to the same opponents, Ten Hag’s irritation at being bested here surfaced as, deep in the second half, he and his Newcastle counterpart pointed fingers in each other’s face after the Dutchman accused Nick Pope, the home goalkeeper of time wasting. In the end he and Howe had to be separated by Manchester United’s assistant manager, Steve McClaren.

Newcastle began by forcing the highest of tempos. At times it was thrillingly exhilarating but the concern for home fans was that it did not seem humanely possible for their team to maintain such ferocity and intensity for too long.

Howe could certainly have done with his side scoring an early goal but when Jacob Murphy created a decent opening courtesy of a cleverly chipped cross David de Gea came to Manchester United’s rescue.

Yet although De Gea’s fine double save kept out both Alexander Isak’s initial header and Willock’s follow up from the rebound, Manchester United, and Diogo Dalot in particular, were being persistently de-stabilised by Allan Saint-Maximin’s electric left-wing advances.