Osula and Barnes lead Newcastle to victory at Crystal Palace

Will Osula and Harvey Barnes scored after half-time to give Newcastle victory at Crystal Palace on Sunday, with the visitors deciding the contest in the opening stages of the second half. The Guardian's match report described a game that changed sharply after the interval, following an opening 45 minutes in which the sides managed only two shots on target between them.

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Osula broke the deadlock two minutes after the restart, turning in a cross from Jacob Murphy. Joe Willock then had an effort disallowed for a narrow offside five minutes later. Newcastle nevertheless extended their advantage six minutes after that, when Barnes finished a passing move. The sequence gave the visitors control after neither side had found a goal before the break.

Palace had created opportunities early on without taking them. Daichi Kamada failed to finish accurately following a run by Dwight McNeil, while Jean-Philippe Mateta sent an effort wide. McNeil also played a low ball across the six-yard area after work from Yéremy Pino, but no Palace player converted it. Those openings did not develop into a sustained threat to Newcastle's defence.

Newcastle manager Mattias Jaissle restored Dan Burn to the back line alongside Fabian Schär, with Sven Botman and Malick Thiaw making way. Burn had been used as an emergency centre-forward in the previous defeat against Aston Villa. Against Palace, the visitors also had goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek to thank for second-half saves from an Adam Wharton curling effort and a long-range shot by Darío Osorio.

The win followed a difficult spell for Newcastle, who had lost three of their previous four matches and been booed off after the home defeat by Villa. Jaissle has been in charge for three months, according to the Guardian. Sunday's improvement after the interval supplied a winning response to that setback, with two goals coming despite Willock's effort being ruled out between them.

Palace, meanwhile, were left with two victories from eight league games under Pierre Sage. The defeat followed their loss at Brighton the previous week, and some home supporters booed during Newcastle's second-half surge. Palace's later attempts through Wharton and Osorio were saved, leaving their early missed opportunities and the visitors' finishing after the break central to the outcome.