Newcastle 2-1 Wolves: Miguel Almiron nets winner for Eddie Howe’s side off the bench to secure win

Eddie Howe put on his poker face when he questioned the fitness of Alexander Isak on Friday. What he really had was an ace in his back pocket, not to mention a game-winning wild card off the bench.

The club’s record signing, starting for the first time in a month, Isak was brilliant, scoring Newcastle’s first goal and injecting momentum into an attacking line that has been slipping in recent weeks. But it was one of those left out, Miguel Almiron, who would show the winning hand.

Howe was accused of being too loyal to underperforming players on the eve of this game. Nice guy Eddie responded by firing his top scorer. But by discovering a ruthless streak, the head coach forced Almiron to rediscover his.

It appeared Newcastle were heading for their sixth game without a win after Wolves substitute Hwang Hee-chan disallowed Isak’s goal when he scored with his first touch in the 70th minute.

But Almiron, no doubt motivated by his demotion, suddenly looked like the player who had terrorized opposition defenses in the first half of the season when he walked onto a Joe Willock pass and unnervingly finished with his left boot at the 79 minutes. It was the kind of goal he had made seem so routine before the turn of the year.

Nothing has been easy for Howe’s side of late though and this victory was greeted more with relief than ecstasy from their promotion earlier in the season. He restores them to fifth and felt significant in setting the tone for the rest of his campaign.

But they were also lucky. Nick Pope’s last appearance here, when he was sent off against Liverpool, cost him a place in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley. Having sailed all season up to that point, it’s fair to say he’s watched the sea ever since. Not with regards to handling him, his gloves are still as safe as ever. Rather, it’s his feet that have the yips.

A heavy touch midway through the first half left most of St James feeling sinking as Raúl Jiménez stole before colliding with the goalkeeper and crashing to the ground. At least referee Andy Madley saw it as a collision rather than something more sinister. To everyone else, it looked like a penalty and a potential red card.

But was Madley, knowing the ball was out of play, waiting for VAR to review the incident rather than making a decision himself? If so, he saved Newcastle. Complying with the referee’s call is probably the fairest way to describe the instruction of those at Stockley Park. Yes, there had been contact and Pope had been clumsy in trying to correct his mistake, but enough to nullify it? You suspect not. The same is true in reverse: if Madley had given the penalty, he would almost certainly have stood.

Such escapes have a habit of freeing the gainers and from then until half-time Newcastle produced their best league performance of 2023. They were leading on 26 minutes when Kieran Trippier struck a free kick from the right and Isak, moving away from Jonny , headed into the bottom corner from 12 meters.

Both sides then traded chances – Bruno Guimaraes hit the bar and Daniel Podence hit the post at opposite ends – before a Trippier slip allowed Hee-chan to slot into an empty net within 60 seconds of coming on.

It took Almiron a little longer to make his impact (he had been on the pitch for 10 minutes), but it was ultimately much more revealing.