This article is part of our Match of the Week series.
Gameweek 33 started with a bang, as Newcastle and Tottenham met in a top-eight match in which the Magpies mentally and physically dominated Spurs, leading to a 4-0 Newcastle win. The Magpies took the season series, walking away with an 8-1 aggregate following a 4-1 win in the reverse fixture. This boosted Newcastle to sixth place, overpassing Manchester United and West Ham but still sitting 10 points behind Tottenham, who fell to fifth due to goal differential after the defeat, with Aston Villa moving into fourth.
Starting XI
Both clubs went unchanged in formation, with Newcastle sticking to the 4-3-3 while Spurs maintained the 4-2-3-1.
Newcastle saw two changes Saturday with their pile-up of injuries, starting with Harvey Barnes replacing Lewis Hall, who dropped to the bench due to a quad issue. Barnes took over Jacob Murphy's spot on the left side of the attack while Murphy played out of position at right-back, taking Hall's spot. The other change came with Elliot Anderson replacing Joe Willock in the middle of the pack after Willock re-injured his Achilles last week against Fulham.
Tottenham only made one change from their last outing against Nottingham Forest, as Pape Sarr dropped to the bench in favor of Rodrigo Bentancur.
Match Facts
Tottenham took an advantage early, as they were on the front foot for the first 15 minutes, shaping out multiple chances that came to no avail. They set up similar tactics as prior matches, playing a high-risk, high-reward system that focuses on scoring goals while being okay with not keeping a clean sheet every match. Possession, press and the overload of one side of the field are the keys to their success when functioning well.
The attack was set up in more of a weird 2-4-2-2 formation, with only the two center-backs staying in the defense, holding a firm line to support the midfielders when in need of a back pass. Most of their build-up completely bypassed the middle third of the pitch, primarily controlling the ball around the opponent's box. That meant the midfielders were not always involved with the attack, basically being used for a quick one-two pass to a runner up field before sitting on the edge of the box and waiting for a ball to fall their way, with most of their play designated for the wings.
From there, the attack was formed on the outside parts of the field, as full-backs Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie rarely stayed back to defend, pushing up into the midfield to try to outnumber the opponent when going forward, possibly the most critical part of their tactic. However, they only combined for one touch in the opponent's box, a chance created and 13 passes into the final third, possibly being the reason for their downfall Saturday, as without those two functioning in their system, not much could come of their attacks.
James Maddison and Brennan Johnson tucked in above the midfield in more of a central attacking role while forwards Heung-Min Son and Timo Werner drifted a bit more outside near the edges of the box to support the wing-backs, making runs forward to create space or to make through ball runs into open space on the sides of the box, hoping to create enough chaos to find an open teammate for a shot in the box. However, once again, other than a few chances at the start of the game, they struggled to get anything going, being stifled by the very defensive setup of Newcastle.
When it came to defending for Spurs, well, they did very little, as they were mainly caught in counterattacks, specifically using their attacking tactics and possession to be their best defense. Outside of that, when they were defending in a controlled manner, they preferred to press on heavy touches or errored passes, looking to catch the other team out on a counter of their own. Their defensive formation was the same as their attacking formation, the only difference being Madison sitting back a bit further, with Johnson and Werner playing more outside near the top of the formation alongside Son.
Newcastle was almost the opposite, as instead of focusing on the attack, they sat back and defended, only truthfully attacking on the counter.
It started with the defensive formation, as they oddly set up in a 3-4-3 to start the contest when on the back foot, but after the early pressure Spurs provided, Howe quickly switched to a 5-4-1. They set this up with Anderson sliding in the middle of the back four while the two attacking wingers, Anthony Gordon and Barnes, shifted to the midfield alongside Bruno Guimaraes and Sean Longstaff. This would halt any momentum Spurs were building, as the back five played wide to prevent a plethora of balls wide while the midfield stacked right above them to block any holes Tottenham could shape out for a pass into the box.
They also had great success in their press, as any build-up from the back from Tottenham would almost always result in a lost possession to Newcastle. This was also highly effective in their own half, as combining the press and sturdy backline the Magpies created, Spurs were left with no time on the ball, creating multiple turnovers at the brink of the final third, giving Newcastle the perfect spot to break on a counterattack.
As for the Magpie's attack, they were only in one gear, focusing on the counter while being okay with losing possession to turn back and defend their net. They are primarily fueled by the immense pace they have moving forward, as very few defenders in the EPL can keep up with the likes of Alexander Isak, Gordon and Barnes.
Once winning the ball in their half, Newcastle would immediately shift into attack , sending a ball flying forward in search of one of their streaking attackers even if the pass wasn't necessarily permitted or played to a good spot. From there, it depended on what the front three could do with the ball, as they would usually either turn it over or use their physical abilities to bully the opponent off the ball. Due to Tottenham's insanely high line, this would work to perfection, as they usually only had to beat van de Van to get through on goal, having almost the entire final third of the field to beat that final defender, which didn't cause much trouble due to the pace up front.
When they did formulate a controlled attack, it was typically based on wing-play, firing it out wide to a winger before they cut in for a shot, made a run to the touchline before a goalside pass or sent a cross into the middle in search of the towering Isak.
They also found great success with their set pieces, shaping out multiple decent opportunities off of corners, as they had 16 chances from the corner compared to Tottenham's three.
In the end, the brilliance of Howe's tactical vision led to the Magpie's overwhelming Spurs. They scored their first and third goals off the counter, as Isak found the back of the net twice after a Tottenham turnover and a long ball played forward, beating the defense for one-on-ones with the keeper. The second goal would be due to their high press in the Spurs half, as a poor pass by Porro due to a defender being on his side would find Gordon in the box before he slotted the ball in the bottom left corner of the net. Finally, their fourth and final goal would come from a corner kick, as a ball sent to the back post would find a crashing Fabian Schar to settle the match at 4-0.
Tottenham's downfall was due to their passive style of play, as they held 73% possession but failed to create enough stress in the Magpie's defense to alter their original plans, allowing through ball after through ball to the attackers while not forcing them to drop deeper to defend because of the lack in conviction going forward for Spurs. Newcastle prefers to play on the back foot despite allowing the second-most goals in the top half of the table, as the only other time we covered them this season, they also contained Aston Villa with a similar tactic, completely halting them with the defense while being effective going forward, being due to the passive play of Villa. Even looking at the stats proved it was Newcastle's game to win outside of the possession, as they registered five big chances, 18 shots, 32 touches in the opposing box and 2.88 xG, compared to Tottenham's one, 11, 27 and 0.77 xG, respectively.
Man of the Match
Even though Isak was the man with the brace Saturday, the Man of the Match will be going to Anthony Gordon for his impressive display, as he scored the second goal of the contest and poured on two assists in his 90 minutes of play. He played a pivotal role in pushing the Newcastle counterattack and creating space for his fellow attackers, usually receiving most of the balls forward and using his shifty and dynamic play to open up pockets for goal-scoring opportunities. He would finish the contest with two shots, four touches in the opposing box, five duels won and eight chances created.
Upcoming Fixtures
Newcastle's upcoming schedule should be manageable: they begin with three bottom-six teams, facing Crystal Palace, Sheffield United and Burnley. It then gets a little more challenging, with Brighton and Manchester United to look forward to in the tail end of their next five-match stretch.
On the other hand, Tottenham are in for a doozy, with four of their next five matches being within the top half of the table, while three of those clubs currently hold the top three spots in the league. They only have one more match in April, facing Arsenal on the 28th, before moving into May and taking on Chelsea, Liverpool, Burnley and Manchester City within two weeks.
Looking Ahead
Newcastle's main concern moving forward will be to hold their spot in the table, as they currently sit sixth and in a Conference League spot depending on outside factors. However, they are tied with Manchester United for that spot on points, only having the advantage due to goal differential. They will also hope to mend the injury crisis that hit the club this season, looking to improve upon that moving into the 2024/25 campaign.
Tottenham is in a similar spot as Newcastle, now fighting an uphill battle to qualify for a UCL spot after Aston Villa took a three-point lead in fourth after their win over Arsenal on Sunday. Luckily, Tottenham most likely has the UEL spot locked up at the least, as they hold a 10-point advantage over the next closest club in Newcastle, although this would much prefer to be back in the UCL next season.
Gameweek 34 Preview
We only have seven matches next weekend, as the league is set for a double gameweek the following week. However, we do have some intriguing matches. I pondered giving Nottingham a third go-around this season as they face Everton in a bottom-five clash that would see the loser inch closer to the relegation zone. Instead, I will give Burnley and Sheffield their first appearance on the Match of the Week series. The two clubs come in sitting 19th and 20th in the table, with their relegation all but inevitable at this point, although both teams would like to finish on a substantial note, hoping not to finish dead last in the league and back that up by winning Saturday.
