They say the table does not lie: Newcastle United are sixth in the Premier League and Crystal Palace are bottom of it. “Can we do better?” Benítez asked after James McArthur’s 86th-minute clearing header cannoned off Mikel Merino’s forehead and flew past Julián Speroni. Gareth Southgate was also here, taking in Jamaal Lascelles and Jonjo Shelvey from Newcastle and the lively Andros Townsend for Palace. But for all Townsend’s activity, with Wilfried Zaha in tandem, Palace barely forced the Newcastle keeper, Rob Elliot, into a save. The 21-year-old was a lively presence but that miss means that after nine league games Palace have failed to score in eight.

Source: The Guardian October 21, 2017 16:07 UTC