Bruno Guimaraes starred as Newcastle United climbed into the top half of the Premier League table with a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace at St James' Park on Sunday.
Eddie Howe's side were looking to build on the momentum gained in their 3-1 win over Burnley last time out, and they began the New Year with a confident display.
Newcastle had to be patient, however, with Anthony Gordon and Joelinton both seeing first-half goals ruled out for offside. The breakthrough finally arrived in the 71st minute, when Guimaraes headed home from close range after Palace failed to fully clear their lines.
The Magpies doubled their advantage seven minutes later as Guimaraes' corner forced a goalmouth scramble inside the box, allowing Malick Thiaw to react quickest and slide the ball home.
The win lifts Newcastle up to ninth in the table, just one point outside the top six, while Crystal Palace sit in 14th place.
How the match unfolded
Palace were slow out of the blocks and Yoane Wissa fired straight at Dean Henderson from Gordon's low centre inside three minutes.
Henderson was called into action again in the 17th minute, first palming away Lewis Hall's corner before reacting sharply to deny Fabian Schar's stooping header from Sandro Tonali's return cross.
Gordon thought he had opened the scoring when he finished neatly from Wissa's unselfish cut-back two minutes later, only for the latter to be ruled offside following a VAR review.
Joelinton was also denied by a correctly raised offside flag after drilling home from Schar's deep pass over the top, before Will Hughes sent a low effort just wide of the right post for Palace after a neat one-two with Yeremy Pino at the end of the first half.
Guimaraes broke the deadlock for Newcastle when he reacted quickest to nod home inside the six-yard box off Lewis Miley's return pass across the face of goal, after Jacob Murphy's initial cross was cleared.
Newcastle doubled their advantage in the 78th minute as Guimaraes' corner caused chaos inside the Palace box, and Thiaw prodded the ball over the line after Henderson could only half clear.
The Magpies nearly added a third in stoppage time when Harvey Barnes forced a fine save from Henderson, with Joe Willock unable to divert the rebound into an unguarded goal.
Magpies start 2026 with a bang
Newcastle ended 2025 with a much-needed 3-1 win over Burnley, which eased some immediate concerns following their narrow Boxing Day defeat to Manchester United.
Eddie Howe rang the changes in the win over Burnley – a decision that paid dividends – and the Magpies boss opted to name a similar line-up once again as his side began the New Year with another impressive performance.
After Gordon saw his close-range finish ruled out for offside, Newcastle came close to finding the opener with a series of half-chances. Guimaraes conducted the play smartly from deep, sending Wissa running through down the right, though his cross to Gordon was blocked out.
Moments later, Murphy’s cleared corner was recovered by Hall, who cut inside Jaydee Canvot and fired a powerful effort on target, forcing Henderson into yet another last-ditch save.
Their sustained pressure finally told in the final 20 minutes, when Guimaraes broke the deadlock with a sharp header, with the Magpies looking to seal the game in quick time.
Schar delivered a first-time cross into the box minutes after Guimaraes’ opener, which Barnes met with a brilliant glancing header that Henderson superbly palmed away.
Thiaw’s late goal sealed the points, though Miley and Willock will rue not getting on the end of some first-rate late chances that fell their way.
Howe will be delighted with his side’s performance and will hope to carry that momentum into their home clash with Leeds United on Wednesday.
Eagles continue to stay grounded
A hectic European schedule and growing fixture congestion appeared to catch up with Palace towards the end of 2025, as Oliver Glasner’s side endured a run of bruising defeats before closing the year with a 1-1 draw against Fulham.
The Eagles showed some signs of that weariness early on, though they managed to keep the Newcastle defence on their toes throughout the first half.
After Henderson calmly dealt with Wissa’s opening effort, Brennan Johnson – making his Palace debut – cleverly teed up Hughes, whose flash across the face of goal was blocked out for a throw-in.
Jefferson Lerma posed a threat as he launched a long throw into the box, forcing a brief scramble in the Newcastle area, with Hughes looking to capitalise.
Having already seen their blushes spared by a narrow offside call that ruled out Gordon’s opener, matters worsened for Glasner when Lerma was forced off with a concussion in the 38th minute following a clash of heads with Thiaw.
What followed was a difficult second half for Palace, who struggled to withstand Newcastle’s sustained pressure. Their best opening came just after the hour mark, when Johnson struck a first-time effort from a tight angle, drawing a sharp save from Nick Pope.
That resistance eventually gave way as the Magpies’ late pressure told, and Glasner will hope his side can regroup quickly ahead of a demanding test against an in-form Aston Villa on Wednesday.
Club reports
Newcastle report | Crystal Palace report
What the managers said
Eddie Howe: "It was a tough game, it always is against Palace. Oliver has done an amazing job. We had to be patient.
"It was bitty at times. I think the substitutions made a difference and helped us over the lines."
Oliver Glasner: "It was a good performance but in the last four defeats we lost three just from set pieces. It's not acceptable and I have to find solutions to support the players better.
"We can't afford to give so many goals away from set pieces. it's the reason we lost today. I was pleased with how we moved the ball and defended."
Next PL fixtures
Key facts
Newcastle remain unbeaten across their last seven home league games (W5 D2), scoring exactly two goals in each match during that run.
Palace are winless in their last seven games across all competitions (D3 L4), their longest run since a run of eight matches between November and December 2023.
Eight of Guimaraes last nine League goals have come on home soil for Newcastle, with each of his last three at home opening the scoring.
Thiaw struck his third Premier League goal of the season for Newcastle, becoming the first German defender to net 3+ strikes in a campaign since Antonio Rudiger in 2021/22.