Newcastle thrash Palace to move into third | OneFootball

Newcastle United cruised to their sixth straight win in all competitions, smashing Crystal Palace 5-0 at St James’ Park and climbing up to third in the Premier League.

The hosts came flying out the blocks and were ahead inside 15 minutes, thanks to Jacob Murphy, who rifled one into the roof of the net from a tight angle.

Palace had a golden chance to equalise after Nick Pope clattered into Chris Richards, and after a long VAR check, the ref pointed to the spot. But Eberechi Eze’s penalty was tame — Pope stood tall and kept it out.

The Magpies didn’t hang about — they went straight up the other end, and Marc Guehi accidentally turned Harvey Barnes’ cross into his own net.

It got even worse for the visitors right before half-time, with the home side bagging two more in quick succession. Barnes finished off a slick counter led by Tonali, and then Fabian Schär nodded in a lovely delivery from Murphy to make it 4-0 at the break.

Early in the second half, Alexander Isak added a fifth, slotting one into the bottom corner after Joelinton nicked the ball off Maxence Lacroix.

With the win, Newcastle now sit just four points behind Arsenal in second, and five clear of Chelsea in sixth, keeping their Champions League hopes well on track ahead of a tough trip to Villa Park on Saturday.