Barnes has last chop to cut down Forest

Nottingham Forest have been fishing in the waters Newcastle aspire to swim in. This season, Nuno Espírito Santo's team are the provincial outfit punching above their weight but in taking them down at the City Ground, Newcastle, now just a point behind Forest, showed they too possess the capability to join the throng.

- John Brewin

A second-half comeback, courtesy of three lovely finishes, the first a piece of striking opportunism from Alexander Isak, the second an arrowing, long-range beauty from Joelinton, showed a full stomach for the fight. The third, scored by Harvey Barnes, cutting inside after an assist by an equally influential replacement in Sandro Tonali, sent Forest fans barrelling home.

In the manner of victory, there was plenty of Forest in Newcastle. "We have been punished in the way we have punished other teams," said Nuno, of a decisive second-half counterattacking masterclass. "They have quality and were lethal."

For the first 45 minutes, Newcastle had struggled for Forest's measure, unable to land a blow when Howe's team are not exactly lacking in muscle or aggression.

On the sidelines, Jason Tindall, Howe's right-hand-man-cum-minder, was doing Jason Tindall things to add further fuel. The referee, Anthony Taylor, decidedly unpopular in Nottingham, was meanwhile barracked from early on. It made for a heady first-half brew and a crackling atmosphere.