Newcastle United finally ended their frustrating run of away defeats in the Premier League with a dominant 4-1 victory over Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. The result was a welcome relief for both fans and manager Eddie Howe, who celebrated the win on his 48th birthday.
Howe Praises Mentality and Squad Performance
The Geordies had endured a miserable run on the road over the past seven months, failing to secure a single away victory against teams including Aston Villa, Brighton, Arsenal, Leeds, Bournemouth, West Ham, and Brentford. After previous setbacks, Howe and his players often received polite applause from the traveling supporters—but this time the roar from the away end was deafening.
“I was fed up of it,” Howe told Match of the Day. “That’s why I’m so pleased that the players gave me the opportunity to come here and not talk about it as much.”
The Newcastle boss made bold selections, rotating the squad after their midweek defeat in Marseille. Aaron Ramsdale, Lewis Miley, and Anthony Elanga were handed rare starts, while regulars such as Lewis Hall, Joelinton, and Nick Woltemade returned to the starting lineup. Bench players included Fabian Schar, Sandro Tonali, Jacob Murphy, and Anthony Gordon.
Rather than disrupting the team, these changes injected energy and creativity, particularly down the flanks with Hall and Tino Livramento returning from injury. Miley contributed a goal and an assist, while Elanga produced his best performance since joining from Nottingham Forest last summer. Joelinton held the midfield, and Woltemade scored a delightful lob to make it 3-0. Ramsdale brought calmness in goal, helping Newcastle complete 88% of their passes and dominate possession.
Malick Thiaw Shines in Dominant Display
Newcastle started aggressively, with Elanga winning a corner immediately after kickoff. Malick Thiaw scored the quickest Premier League goal of the season—just 55 seconds in—heading Miley’s in-swinging delivery.
“We also scored early in other games away or went 1-0 up,” Thiaw said. “But this time, even after we lost a bit of momentum in the game, we all stayed together, defended really well and it paid off.”
Newcastle combined their physicality with a ruthless edge in attack, winning all 15 tackles, covering nearly 5km more than Everton, and claiming more aerial duels and clearances than the hosts. While Pickford was partly at fault for Miley’s goal, the team doubled their advantage, with Woltemade adding a third and Thiaw scoring a fourth with a second header.
“Unbelievable player,” Woltemade told Sky Sports. “We’re always making jokes about that he can’t head. Today he did two headers. Yesterday he wanted to train headers but the rain was so bad so we couldn’t train. You don’t need it anymore.”
A Step Forward but Work Remains
Howe stressed that while the win was significant, Newcastle must continue improving their away form. “We have work to do on our away form,” Howe said. “It’s a long way back from where we have been. It’s not been good enough, but today was a big step forward.”
With this result, Newcastle send a message to the rest of the Premier League: their away struggles may finally be over, and the squad’s depth and mentality are beginning to match their ambitions.
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