Newcastle United

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We asked for your views on Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe's decision to leave Anthony Gordon on the bench as an unused substitute for a second week running because the head coach is "looking at the future".

Here are some of your thoughts:

Phil: He can have his moments but he doesn't come across as a team player, which is very frustrating. If we can get a good transfer fee then I wouldn't be bothered about him moving on. Personally, I prefer Harvey Barnes on the left anyway. Plus, if it's Bayern Munich he is going to and he is happy to play second fiddle to much better wingers, just to "contribute" towards winning trophies, then that's not who I want at Newcastle.

Rob: Regardless of his future at the club, Howe should always play his strongest side. Benching Gordon, given how post-Christmas has gone, is tantamount to sabotaging your own side, especially when we've got similar points to Tottenham. Playing your favourites to the detriment of playing players in their best position is the same. Howe needs to go.

Tony: Let the manager manage. He knows the squad and the individuals. He knows what's needed for next season. What we think is a waste of time.

Paul: Unless Gordon wants to go, there are no good reasons to sell him. He is a versatile, committed attacker of quality. Why else would he be in the England squad and have big clubs constantly sniffing around him?

Peter: Everton fans warned us about this, so I kind of expected it. But, much like the rest of the squad, he hasn't been at his best recently.

Tom: If he is going, we need to avoid a repeat of last year's Alexander Isak debacle. Get it done early, scout a bit wider than the Premier League or players the bigger clubs are interested in and buy early so the player gets as close to a full pre-season as possible. I would prefer us to sell for £10-15m less, if it means it gets done.

We asked for your thoughts after Sunday's Premier League game between Nottingham Forest and Newcastle.

Here are some of your comments:

Nottingham Forest fans

Richard: A gritty battling performance with a depleted squad to see the Reds over the finishing line of safety. Over the last month every player in the squad has played their part in securing safety in the Premier League and reaching the semi-final of the Europa League. This truly is an amazing football club.

Kris: A hard-earned point and another season of Premier League football assured. So pleased for Elliot Anderson, showing great character. A lot to do over the summer and hopefully recruitment will be better and we'll have a little less managerial drama!

Colin: On the back of getting knocked out of Europe on Thursday and also having played so many games in a short period of time along with all the injuries we have, it wasn't the best performance as regards good football but the effort and commitment to get a result to stay in the Premier League next season was immense. Well done Nottingham Forest.

Mark: Fair result, Forest looked like they were running on fumes. Tactical changes after 10 minutes or so made it more of a competition. Newcastle looked slick at times, so thanks to Matz Sels for keeping us in the game.

Newcastle fans

Geoff: Exactly the same as we've played all season. Play well. Dominate the game. Take the lead only to lose it again late in game. Eddie Howe has gone as far as he can with this team. Replace him and clear out half of that inept team too.

Mike: Another poor performance, except for one good move that resulted in a goal. Lots of possession and opportunities but no killer instinct in front of goal and poor defending. Too predictable I'm afraid!

Gordon: Yet again we took the lead and failed to defend it. What an unbelievable sequence this season. Full marks to Forest and Elliot Anderson in particular. You deserved the point.

GPW: Same old defensive frailties combined with very poor finishing sums up Newcastle this season!

Ciaran Kelly
Newcastle United reporter

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Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe says he left forward Anthony Gordon on the bench for the second week running because he is "looking at the future".

The England international has been the subject of formal interest from Bayern Munich.

Although Gordon missed the defeats by Arsenal and Bournemouth in April with a minor hip flexor issue, he was fit enough to return to the squad for the subsequent fixtures against Brighton and Nottingham Forest.

However, Howe did not call upon the club's top scorer for either game despite naming him on the bench.

"It was tactical," he told BBC Radio Newcastle about Gordon's latest omission, following Sunday's 1-1 draw at the City Ground.

"The team has performed well in Anthony's absence. Obviously, we have gone with a bit more solidity with Joelinton playing wide and one winger the other side just to try and strengthen us defensively, because we weren't happy with how we were defending.

"Since January, really, we have been disappointed - so a change of structure really. Ant has come back to fitness. He's training well but, also, I'm looking at the future as well."

How do you feel about the Gordon situation? Tell us

Newcastle United and England defender Dan Burn said therapy worked "quite well" for him as he urged those struggling with their mental health to seek help.

Burn was speaking at the launch of the 'One of Our Own', external initiative by the club and Newcastle City Council to mark Mental Health Awareness Week this week.

• Read more from Burn here

Newcastle are closing in on tying down English midfielder Lewis Miley, 20, to a long-term contract. (Sun), external

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Pundits Shay Given and Danny Murphy join host Kelly Cates to bring you the action and talking points from Sunday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• West Ham 0-1 Arsenal

• Burnley 2-2 Aston Villa

• Nottingham Forest 1-1 Newcastle

• Crystal Palace 2-2 Everton

Ciaran Kelly
Football reporter

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Twenty-seven points thrown away from winning positions - it's the statistic that perfectly sums up Newcastle's bruising league season.

The visitors should have been out of sight at the City Ground.

They had numerous opportunities to open the scoring in the second half - even before substitute Harvey Barnes stepped up once again to deliver another goalscoring cameo.

The forward has bagged more memorable goals this season, including an opener against Barcelona and a double against Manchester City, but it looked like this strike would keep Newcastle's campaign alive as they chase a European spot.

But Eddie Howe's side have rarely looked entirely comfortable when in front this season.

Despite having far more recovery and preparation time than Nottingham Forest, who were playing their third game of the week, Newcastle were punished for some tired defending late on as Elliott Anderson haunted his boyhood club.

His name had been sung by the away end at one point, as a much-admired academy graduate who was only sold so the club could avoid a breach of profit and sustainability rules in 2024.

But it was Forest supporters who were serenading the 'Geordie Maradona' at full-time after he drove into the box and fired beyond a helpless Nick Pope.

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe, speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "Another game we should have won - we played pretty well. First half was a none event, neither team grabbed the game like they could have done.

"Second half we did do that, scored a great goal from our perspective and then was in the position to win the game. It's happened too many times this season where we haven't followed through and defended well enough."

On poor defending: "It contributes to a lot - the feeling when you are able to defend well and consistently keep clean sheets it stabilises you as a team and you feel you can see out a game. For whatever reason, a combination of factors in my opinion, we haven't delivered that and our confidence has been hit.

"I don't think there was any sign of that [Forest] goal coming, we defended pretty well overall but in a moment we've conceded.

"We did have a number of chances. That's the other way to defend - to score a second and third goal and that's something we've been good at over the years.

"We had some big moments before and after we scored. Their goalkeeper made some good saves, but we'll probably look at that with a different eye when we review it and see we could've been more clinical. I thought we were good between both boxes and a lot of positives, but ultimately we're disappointed to draw.

"The last three games have been a lot better. Better energy, focus and the players have been committed. We've had mixed results in those games but performances have been good."

Magpies goalscorer Harvey Barnes, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live: "A little bit disappointing. It was a little bit of a back and forth game and then we got the goal to go ahead. We looked comfortable for a bit and looked like we might get another one, and created a few chances.

"It has been the story of the season, late in games sinking in, conceding pressure and ultimately conceding goals, and that has cost us today.

"When we go ahead in games it's something that we've not dealt with well enough. We start to look nervy and lose the confidence to go and get another goal and ultimately just try to defend the lead which we haven't done well enough.

"It's hard to put your finger on exactly why, maybe a bit of fatigue towards the end of games, and then when it happens once or twice then the confidence drops.

"Dropping back is not an instruction, it is just something that seems to creep into our game and it is something we've got to stop doing."

On former teammate Elliot Anderson's late goal: "We had a few good years with him here and he played well today and ultimately scored the goal that leveled the game. Nice to see him doing well but not when we're playing against him."

Did you know?

• Newcastle have dropped more points from winning positions than any other side in the Premier League this season (27).

• Harvey Barnes has scored in back-to-back Premier League games for the first time since last November, while his 21 goal involvements in all competitions this season are as many as in his previous two campaigns with Newcastle combined (13 in 2024-25, eight in 2023-24).

Listen to Howe and Barnes on BBC Sounds.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Nottingham Forest's performance

What did you make of Newcastle's display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

Vitor Pereira makes four changes to his injury-hit Nottingham Forest side.

Matz Sels, Luca Netz, Dilane Bakwa and Taiwo Awoniyi start for the hosts with Murillo, Ibrahim Sangare, Ola Aina and Morgan Gibbs-White all sidelined.

It is only defender Netz's second start since his February arrival and just winger Bakwa's sixth Premier League start of the season.

Nottingham Forest XI: Sels, Jair Cunha, Milenkovic, Morato, Netz, Anderson, Dominguez, Williams, Bakwa, I.Jesus, Awoniyi.

Subs: Ortega, Wood, Lucca, Hutchinson, Moreira, Yates, McAtee, Whitehall, Sinclair.

Record signing Nick Woltemade makes his first start since March as Newcastle make two changes for the trip to the City Ground.

The Germany international and Lewis Hall have both been recalled by head coach Eddie Howe as he tweaks his side following last week's win against Brighton.

Hall comes back in after Lewis Miley broke his leg in training earlier this week. It remains to be seen if Newcastle are lining up with a back five or if Hall has been tasked with playing out of position at right-back.

Newcastle XI: Pope; Thiaw, Botman, Burn, Hall; Guimaraes, Tonali, Joelinton; Murphy, Woltemade, Osula.

Subs: Ramsdale, Trippier, Wissa, Gordon, Barnes, Elanga, Willock, A Murphy, Ramsey.

There are four games in the Premier League on Sunday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Burnley v Aston Villa - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Crystal Palace v Everton - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2

• Nottingham Forest v Newcastle - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• West Ham v Arsenal (16:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-offs 14:00 BST unless stated

Follow the three 14:00 games here

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Former Newcastle defender Olivier Bernard believes Dan Burn is the safest option at left-back for the remaining three games of the season

Hall is considered the first-choice option under Eddie Howe, having started the majority of matches this season in that position, while Burn has also filled in when needed.

And after what has been a difficult season for Newcastle, Bernard thinks they need to "start with the basics" in order to finish on a high.

"It's difficult because they are two different players," he told BBC Radio Newcastle. "One is an attacking full back and the other is more defensive, who likes to go forward.

"Burn isn't the quickest, but he likes to overlap and he has the cardio for it, whereas Hall is a more tidy player who likes to go one-on-one.

"I'd like to see Burn playing as left-back. I'm not saying he is left-back, but in terms of security, Burn is the better choice.

"If you are losing by one or two goals then Hall would be a better option to get back into the game.

"It's difficult and it is up to the manager, but Burn is the security and should start.

"You need to start with the basics and level up if needed."

Nottingham Forest are not quite mathematically safe yet on 42 points and this weekend they play before West Ham and Tottenham do, so they will go into this game still needing something.

Forest have come a long way under Vitor Pereira and are playing really well at the moment and scoring goals, but Morgan Gibbs-White has been key to all of that so they really need him to be available after his horrific head injury.

My other worry with Forest is how much Thursday's Europa League semi-final with Aston Villa will take out of them - but at the same time I am not sure Newcastle can take advantage even if they are tired.

The Magpies' win over Brighton was much-needed for their boss Eddie Howe but it was far from convincing. All things considered, this will probably end up in a draw.

Sutton's prediction: 1-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

After the disappointment of losing in the Europa League semi-finals, Nottingham Forest return to action looking to taking a step closer to securing their Premier League status, against Newcastle on Sunday (14:00 BST). BBC Sport looks at the key themes ahead of the fixture.

Forest must now concentrate on survival

Having had their dreams of European glory ruthlessly dashed by Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest must now pick themselves up and secure the points they need to secure their Premier League status for next season.

Six points clear of West Ham with three games to go, four points would definitely see them stay up, but a win should also prove to be enough given their vastly superior goal difference over the Hammers.

The manner of Thursday's 4-0 defeat at Villa Park was surprising given what a rich vein of form they have been in.

The improvement by Vitor Pereira's side in front of goal in recent weeks has been astonishing. Having managed a paltry 28 goals in their first 30 league games of the season they have banged in a remarkable 16 in their last five.

Those 16 goals - from only 49 shots - have come from an xG of just 6.8, meaning they have overperformed it by an incredible 9.2.

Pereira's sharpshooters have scored three or more goals in three consecutive Premier League games for the first time since March to April 1995 having trounced Sunderland 5-0, Burnley 4-1 and Chelsea 3-1.

Newcastle desperate to end challenging season on a high

After a damaging run of nine defeats in 12 league games, Newcastle stopped the rot last Saturday with a morale-boosting win over Brighton.

It lifted some of the pressure that has been mounting on head coach Eddie Howe, with media reports following the match asserting that he will still be in charge next season.

However, the win over Brighton does not paper over the cracks of what has been an extremely disappointing league campaign and Howe will be desperate to finish strongly, going into what will be a key summer of squad rebuilding.

"It's been a big learning season for us," reflected defender Dan Burn after the win over the Seagulls. "We've struggled mentally, attacking on all four fronts the way that we did. It was tough going into games when you were just recovering and going again."

They will be hoping to address their awful away form that has seen them pick up just 16 points from 17 games. Wolves (seven) and Sunderland (14) are the only sides than have scored fewer than the 16 goals the Geordies have on the road.

Dale Johnson
Football issues correspondent

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Referee Sam Barrott was right not to show a red card to Newcastle United goalkeeper Nick Pope against Arsenal, according to the Premier League's key match incidents panel.

Pope came rushing out of his area in the 74th minute and brought down Viktor Gyokeres during the Gunners' 1-0 win at the Emirates.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta felt Pope should have been sent off for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.

"It's a clear red card," Arteta said after the match. "I've watched it 10 times. If you have ever played football, it is a red card."

But the panel unanimously backed the referee's decision to only show Pope a yellow card, with Malick Thiaw close by.

The panel supported the caution "due to the proximity of the covering defender, the ball was out wide, and the attacker didn't obviously have control of the ball".

No video assistant review from Jarred Gillett was also backed 5:0.

Huzaifah Khan
BBC Sport journalist

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Nottingham Forest at The City Ground (kick-off 14:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Howe said Lewis Miley will miss the rest of the season after slipping in training. They realised early on that the leg break was "more serious than we thought".

• On Miley's injury, he said that "it's a real shame" because the 20-year-old has been "outstanding" in recent weeks but it is hoped he will be back for pre-season.

• He added that Tino Livramento is likely to be out for the rest of the season. He could push for Fulham on the last day but that would be "silly" and also said he's "not 100% sure" whether Fabian Schar will return before their campaign is up.

• Howe was asked about Nick Woltemade looking disappointed in the celebrations last weekend after not coming on, he responded: "The media will no doubt blow everything up but he's training well, he's committed and we really value him and want him to do well. I have the difficult job of picking a team every week, and no doubt, there's a lot of disappointed players when I do pick a team. All I ask is the players give their all and support their team-mates, which Nick has done and he'll get his opportunity to play."

• On how it felt to get the dressing room photo after the Brighton win, he said: "It's good to see that part of our identity back. It's been too long since the last one. It's what we work towards during the week, so it's nice to share that moment together. We certainly want some more between now and the end of the season."

• On still having the chance to make Europe this season, Howe said: "We've trained well and that's where I get my measurement from in terms of mentality, in terms of effort and our preparation. It's been strong. I said it was strong last week. There's been no end-of-season feel to our training ground work, that's really important and while there's still an opportunity, we'll try and grab it."

• On reaching out to former Newcastle midfielder Elliot Anderson after his mother's passing: "I reached out to him and it's very, very sad news for him and his family and having been there myself, I totally know those emotions and those feelings and my thoughts immediately went to him and his family to make sure that they were OK. As you say, we have a really good relationship. I respect him both as a person and as a footballer and I'm so pleased to see him doing so well, and for me, that was never in doubt."

• On whether he can shed any light on reports that Bayern Munich have been in contact with the club over potentially signing Anthony Gordon, he responded: "No, none. That's not something I'm involved in."

Hit play above to hear more from Howe, speaking to BBC Radio Newcastle's Matthew Raisbeck and Nisha Joshi of Look North, or listen on BBC Sounds here

Listen to full match commentary of Forest v Newcastle on BBC Radio 5 Live from 14:00 BST on Sunday

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Bayern Munich have made contact with Newcastle over a move for Anthony Gordon, but there is a £20m gap in valuations between the clubs. (Mail - subscription required, external)

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Ciaran Kelly
Newcastle United reporter

Fabian Schar's future has been the subject of several questions sent in via our 'Ask about Newcastle' form.

Newcastle United hope the defender will return to action before the end of the season as he steps up his recovery from injury.

Schar has not played since January after suffering an ankle injury in the 4-3 win over Leeds United and a subsequent foot infection, which required minor surgery.

It remains to be seen if he could make the squad for the visit of West Ham next week and/or the trip to Fulham on the final day.

Schar is out of contract in the summer, but head coach Eddie Howe insisted last week that a decision has not yet been made regarding his future.

It is clearly a big call.

Only Dan Burn and Bruno Guimaraes have played more games for Newcastle than Schar since Howe took charge in 2021, and his absence has been felt in recent months.

The 34-year-old brings so much to this side with his vision and composure on the ball, but he is also a dependable centre-back.

Since the Swiss was sidelined, Howe's leaky side have conceded an average of nearly two goals per game, which highlights his importance.

But Newcastle are preparing to lower the average age of the squad in the summer, and Howe was tellingly unable to offer a definitive answer on Schar's future.

Schar's situation appears increasingly uncertain as he enters the final weeks of his current deal.

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Newcastle will make signing a new goalkeeper one of their priorities this summer after identifying the position as a weakness, with Manchester City and England's James Trafford and Brighton's Netherlands international Bart Verbruggen, both 23, among the targets. (Telegraph - subscription required, external)

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