Where would Newcastle be without Callum Wilson? In three years on Tyneside the England striker has scored 41 goals in 80 appearances, playing a key role in a couple of relegation escapes before helping secure Champions League qualification in May.
Without Wilson here, Newcastle’s winless run could very easily have stretched to four matches. Instead his impeccably converted, if controversially awarded, second-half penalty proved a rare moment of perfection, camouflaging the series of fast‑developing faultlines running through a side quite possibly distracted by an impending European adventure.
