Newcastle United kicked off the New Year with a commanding 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace, propelled by a brilliant performance from Bruno Guimaraes.
The Brazilian midfielder was instrumental as the Magpies climbed into the top half of the Premier League table with a confident display at St. James’ Park on Sunday.
Eddie Howe’s side, aiming to build on their recent 3-1 triumph over Burnley, started brightly but had to exercise patience.
Early in the game, Anthony Gordon and Joelinton both saw goals chalked off for offside, Gordon had tapped home Yoane Wissa’s perfectly timed cross in the 19th minute, while Joelinton’s composed finish following Fabian Schar’s pass was also ruled out.
The breakthrough finally came in the 71st minute when Guimaraes reacted quickest to nod in from close range after Lewis Miley’s pass found him amid Palace’s scramble in the box.
Seven minutes later, Newcastle doubled their lead when Guimaraes’ corner caused chaos in the penalty area, allowing Malick Thiaw to slide home the ball past Dean Henderson.
Crystal Palace’s brightest moment came right before halftime, as Will Hughes’ clever one-two with Yeremy Pino nearly produced a goal, but his low shot went just wide.
Brennan Johnson, making his debut for Palace, also tested Nick Pope with a sharp effort, yet Newcastle’s consistent pressure proved decisive.
Howe will be pleased with this start to 2026, as Newcastle remain unbeaten in their last seven home Premier League games (W5 D2), scoring exactly two goals in each fixture during that run.
The Magpies’ performance was reflected in the statistics, generating 1.88 expected goals (xG) compared to Palace’s modest 0.70 xG.
Palace, meanwhile, continue to struggle, now winless in their last seven matches across all competitions (D3 L4), their longest such stretch since late 2023.
They also failed to register a single shot on target in the first half, marking the third time away from home this season they have struggled to test the goalkeeper, following similar performances against Leicester City in January 2025 and Arsenal in October 2025.
