Burnley 1 Newcastle 3 – How nervy was that? Wissa up and running? Did Pope perform on his return?
SOURCE:The Athletic|BY:Chris Waugh and George Caulkin
Newcastle labour to a 3-1 win at Burnley in the Premier League, just their second away victory of the season
The way Newcastle started this game, it looked like being an easy three points. In the end, they were made to sweat for it — despite what the scoreline might suggest.
Eddie Howe’s side picked up just their second Premier League away win of the season with a 3-1 victory at Burnley, but it was far from comfortable.
Joelinton opened the scoring after just 65 seconds, a smart flick from Anthony Gordon’s deflected cross making for his first Premier League goal in exactly one year.
Five minutes later, Newcastle were 2-0 up as Yoane Wissa — in the £55million striker’s first league start of an injury-hit debut campaign — prodded home after some suspect home defending.
The comfort in that lead did not last long. Josh Laurent’s 23rd-minute volley brought Burnley back into it, extending Newcastle’s run without a Premier League clean sheet to a 12th consecutive game.
And the home side almost equalised shortly before the break when Marcus Edwards’ low shot was cleared off the line by Fabian Schar.
Burnley ended the first half stronger and picked up exactly where they left off after the restart, Edwards and Loum Tchaouna forcing Nick Pope into smart saves, before Laurent’s looping header came back off the bar and Tchaouna nodded high and wide.
Newcastle wasted further chances of their own. Malick Thiaw’s header was cleared off the line by Bashir Humphreys, while substitute Jacob Murphy skied over the bar at the far post when it looked easier to score, before Bruno Guimaraes profited from a comical stoppage-time mix-up between Martin Dubravka and Hjalmar Ekdal to make the game safe.
Here’s The Athletic’s Chris Waugh and George Caulkin on the biggest talking points.
How nervy was that?
Relief will be the overriding emotion on the Newcastle bench. That second half was torturous and Newcastle were fortunate not to cede yet another lead.
However, somehow, some way, they held on for what is only their sixth win from 19 Premier League away games in 2025. It is only their second victory from 10 this season, and their third in 13 if you go back even further. This must be merely the start of a dramatic improvement in their away form if they hold any hopes of qualifying for Europe again.
Perhaps understandably for a team who had lost six points from winning positions away from home this season, and 13 in general, Newcastle did not look comfortable with their lead, especially once Laurent pulled one back. Edwards saw a shot excellently cleared off the line by Schar, and while Newcastle were carrying a real threat and managed 14 first-half efforts on goal, their most in a league game this season, they also appeared open and nervy.
Eddie Howe on the sidelines on Tuesday (Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)
This was the 12th Premier League game in succession in which Newcastle have conceded, while it is 12 matches across all competitions without a clean sheet. Their increasingly porous defence — which, admittedly, is rather injury hit, and Lewis Miley was again covering at right-back — means Newcastle need to score at least twice to win a game, and this was only the second time on the road in the Premier League they have managed that in 2025-26, after the 4-1 victory at Everton (their only other away triumph).
At Old Trafford on Friday, Newcastle had a degree of ‘control’ when it came to possession and territory, though they rarely looked like scoring. At Turf Moor, Harvey Barnes and Wissa wasted glorious first-half opportunities and Newcastle appeared dangerous before the break, yet there was also a vulnerability to them.
They are struggling to find the ideal balance between attack and defence right now, especially away. That must be a key New Year’s Resolution for Howe.
Chris Waugh
How did Wissa do?
In his second start for Newcastle — and his first in the Premier League — Wissa popped up with a poacher’s finish. Nothing about it was pretty, aside from what it did to the scoreline and what it represented in terms of Howe’s options.
From a couple of yards out, Wissa turned the ball in at the second attempt, reacting smartly after his first shot had been cleared off the line. It had been a messy, chaotic preamble and the goal brought a lengthy VAR check, with Burnley adamant that Guimaraes had pushed Laurent. It stood and Newcastle were 2-0 up.
Wissa’s strike was his second goal for Newcastle (Lee Parker – CameraSport via Getty Images)
Replacing Nick Woltemade up front, Wissa brought a directness to Newcastle’s attack, allowing them to press and break with pace. It means variation and a different dimension, particularly away from home, where his team-mates routinely cede control.
By half-time, the scoreline was a little less comfortable, but Howe’s team had mustered 14 shots.
Wissa played his part in that, although the DR Congo international should have added to his tally. In the 29th minute, he found himself unmarked at the far post when a corner from Guimaraes reached him, but directed his header wide. It felt like a big miss.
Wissa cannot yet be fully match-sharp after missing so much football with the knee injury he suffered while playing for his country in September, but that will come. He has already demonstrated that goals will come, too.
George Caulkin
How key was Pope?
Pope’s return to the first XI was a big call by Howe and it was indisputably the right call, with the England goalkeeper producing a sequence of vital second-half saves.
When Pope came out of the team after Newcastle’s 2-1 defeat in Marseille in the Champions League on November 25, initially with a groin injury and then with illness, it felt like a good time for a rest.
The 33-year-old had not been convincing during poor away defeats at West Ham United and Brentford, and there was increasing clamour from supporters for Aaron Ramsdale to be given his opportunity.
Pope made important saves at Turf Moor (Lee Parker – CameraSport via Getty Images)
If Ramsdale, who is on a season-long loan from Southampton, has not made glaring errors, neither has he made the position his own. He is progressive in his distribution but does not command his area in the way that Pope, at his best, does. In Pope’s absence — and with a batch of key injuries — uncertainty has festered.
As Newcastle yet again allowed momentum to drift away, they needed Pope to step up. He is a big save ’keeper and there were a number of them against Burnley, as he got down well to repel Tchaouna’s shot and then used his legs to block Edwards.
As they sought to navigate what felt like a must-win fixture, few would have predicted that Pope would be such a pivotal performer for Newcastle. They needed him.
George Caulkin
What did Howe say?
“This was a massive win for us and it was vital we got it over the line. In an ideal world of course we go on and add to the scoreline. But we’re not in an ideal world and we’re having to deal with a run of games (where) we haven’t done that enough.
“Today we did well, we did our jobs. We weren’t perfect but that improvement will only come from winning games. We’re maybe not in the psychological moment to do that. The challenge is to get to a moment where we do that.
“There has been some honest reflection, always. We don’t hide from what we need to do well and the lads are special people and really want to do well. As long as we have that, with the quality of player, we’ll be fine.”
On Yoane Wissa:
“Yoane is your traditional No 9, he wants to run in behind, he gets into the right positions to score, which was highlighted again tonight. A lot of his facets were really strong and he is highly motivated to do well and perform well for this team. Nick (Woltemade) has done really well too, so it’s good to have two goalscorers now who can hopefully help us.”
On selecting Nick Pope:
“It’s a tough call, it always is in the goalkeeper position because it’s a really important one. It was the right time to bring Nick back for the reasons you saw in the game.
“He makes big saves. He stays still and big in the goal and it’s a gift to have him there. I’ve always trusted him and he’s never let us down. That block he makes in the second half is a huge moment in the game.”
On Joelinton:
“I thought he played really well. He was at his physical best and his aggression and steel and determination in midfield for us is different to any other player. You feel better for having him on the pitch and he gets a big goal for us as well. A huge performance from him.”
On Lewis Hall:
“He twisted his ankle in the first half and it was bothering him through the second half but he was able to get through it. Fingers crossed there is no big injury.”
What next for Newcastle?
Sunday, January 4: Crystal Palace (Home), Premier League, 3pm UK, 10am ET
