A look at your Newcastle United evening headlines on Friday, March 18.
Newcastle United's path to Premier League safety now clearly illuminated
From the darkest of tunnels with barely a slither of light ahead of them to an illuminated pathway to Premier League safety and hopefully well beyond. The future is looking bright again at St James' Park.
Had the Magpies' fate been played out at Turf Moor with a last gasp victory in Lancashire, the campaign would no doubt have been dubbed: "The Great Escape" for Eddie Howe's men.
Instead, Newcastle's storyline for the season is more than likely to be much less emotionally charged and by the time that trip to Turf Moor comes around, United's fate should be well sealed. For all the suggestions of a last day shoot-out for survival, this game will probably be a dead rubber from a Toon point of view.
Premier League referees unwilling to stick to onfield decisions at VAR monitor, says Callum Wilson
Callum Wilson doesn’t think enough Premier League referees are willing to go to the VAR monitor unless they know the decision will be overturned. The Newcastle United striker was unhappy that David Coote was not sent to look at the potential foul on Jacob Murphy in the defeat to Chelsea on Sunday.
Many viewers felt that the Magpies should have been given a penalty when Wilson’s team mate had his shirt pulled and then was tripped in the 18-yard box by Trevoh Chalobah but the appeals were waved away. After that incident happened just shy of the hour mark at Stamford Bridge, the home side went on to win 1-0 thanks to a moment of magic from Kai Havertz in the 89th minute.
The Magpies benefited from a VAR review at Everton in midweek when Toffees midfielder Allan was shown the red card after referee Craig Pawson was told to check his original yellow card decision on the monitor, although Eddie Howe's side couldn't make their advantage count. Wilson, who is still unavailable with a calf injury, thinks a different decision should have been reached, especially with the benefit of VAR.
Ruben Neves walking disciplinary tightrope ahead of crucial Newcastle United clash
Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves will have to walk a tight disciplinary tightrope ahead of his side's crucial up-and-coming clash against Newcastle United. The Magpies are set to face Bruno Lage's side next month and are now looking up rather than down in the Premier League table.
With the Magpies steering clear of any woes in recent weeks, the Toon are still presented some stern tests before the conclusion of the 21/22 campaign. Eddie Howe's side have to face Spurs, Manchester City and Arsenal before the end of the season, and currently occupy 14th in the table ahead of this weekend's clash with Everton.
Wolves were victorious in the reverse fixture earlier this season, as the Wanderers prevailed 2-1 winners at Molineux, thanks to a brace from forward Hwang Hee-chan. The defeat back in October left the Magpies still in search of their first win of the season, with Steve Bruce's reign coming to end shortly after.
Everton pitch invader's goalpost incident was planned well in advance ahead of Newcastle United defeat
The pitch invader who interrupted Newcastle United's defeat at Everton and sparked the added time that eventually led to a late goal for the Toffees says the protest was planned well in advance. The 21-year-old who tied himself to a goal post at Goodison Park has now been identified as Louis McKechnie.
Louis McKechnie is a mechanical engineering student who found his emblazoned across TV screens around the world when using cable to attach himself to the front post in front of the Gwladys Street End. And the Insulate Britain campaigner even took to social media before the game to tell the world exactly what he was going to do.
Posting a video before the 1-0 loss for Newcastle, McKechnie said: "I'm about to disrupt a football match and I'm terrified. But I believe as many people as possible need to know what a possible future holds."
Bruno Guimaraes' Everton anger and reaction to losing ball dispels 'luxury' myth for Newcastle
The majority of Newcastle United players stayed off social media in the immediate aftermath of the Magpies' 1-0 defeat against Everton on Thursday night, but Bruno Guimaraes quickly got his message across after the game. Although Bruno is heading off on international duty, the midfielder spoke for the dressing room when he urged his team-mates to simply 'focus on training and playing better' as they prepare to travel to Dubai for a warm-weather camp.
Clearly, Bruno's influence is growing on and off the pitch. Bruno had 81 touches at Goodison Park - more than any other Newcastle player - as the mid-season arrival repeatedly demanded the ball and dictated the tempo in just his third start for the club. To put that figure into perspective, midfield partners Joelinton and Joe Willock had 53 and 42 touches respectively.
You can see why Bruno has quickly earned his team-mates' trust and why they give him the ball. The big-money signing completed 94% of his passes against Everton and all 16 of his long balls picked out a team-mate.
