Newcastle continued their steady climb towards safety after Joe Willock’s equaliser earned a draw at West Ham to extend their unbeaten run in the league to six games.
The unimpressive hosts were fortunate to take the lead through Craig Dawson’s header but an instinctive finish from Willock ensured another step in the right direction for Newcastle under their manager, Eddie Howe.
Failure to beat Watford in January seemed to be a major blow to Newcastle’s hopes of avoiding relegation, but 12 points from their last six matches – two more than they managed in the opening 18 games of a turbulent first half of the season – have eased their supporters’ fears and lifted them out of the bottom three. Howe said: “I’m satisfied with the point but frustrated it maybe wasn’t more. The way we started the game was excellent. The only disappointment for me was that we only got one goal – there was more in it for us.
“From the moment the game kicked off we started in a really positive way and the team’s in a good place at the moment.”
West Ham’s inability to maintain their lead, leaving them with one win from five in the league, prevented them from climbing back into fourth place and underlined the nagging feeling that a lack of squad depth will prove costly in their quest for Champions League football. Kurt Zouma returned to the starting lineup, with the defender the subject of derision from the Newcastle fans for the inexplicable social media video of him abusing his pet cat.
Newcastle’s hopes of a fourth successive league win were hampered by the loss of Kieran Trippier after the defender fractured his foot against Aston Villa, as well as the flair and pace of Allan Saint-Maximin, who is sidelined with a calf injury.
The visitors were also forced to travel down by road rather than plane on Friday due to the impact of Storm Eunice, but there was no sign of any fatigue from their players. Newcastle made a sharp start which almost resulted in a third-minute opener but the goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski blocked Joelinton’s shot from an acute angle.
Willock went close with a shot that was deflected over the crossbar as West Ham floundered sheepishly during the early exchanges.
But the hosts, looking much more sluggish than the team forced to take a 280-mile coach trip to London, finally spluttered into life. Jarrod Bowen, playing with great confidence after scoring five goals in his previous five league matches, was only denied by Martin Dubravka’s exceptional save which pushed his shot on to the bar.
The excellent Willock was increasingly looking a threat with his thrusting attacking runs from midfield but Newcastle needed more of a knockout punch in the final third, with the striker Chris Wood still searching for a first goal since his January move.
Although David Moyes’s team had struggled to move out of first gear during the opening half-hour, Dawson profited from Aaron Cresswell’s free-kick to head them into the lead with his second goal in as many games.
But Newcastle, who are unbeaten in the league since the middle of December, deservedly equalised at the end of the first half after a poor defensive header from Declan Rice was seized upon by Willock, with his impeccably timed flick crossing the line via the post.
The second half was a tepid affair and an agitated Saïd Benrahma, who was substituted in the 73rd minute, appeared to let out his frustration at Moyes after the manager asked him to speed up his exit from the pitch.
It was another unconvincing performance, much to the disgruntlement of the impatient home fans, and one which suggested West Ham’s top-four challenge is likely to fall short.
Moyes said: “I was thrilled to take a point because it was one of our poorer performances this season.
“Getting a point hopefully will prove to be an important one later in the season.”
Newcastle, meanwhile, coped admirably without two of their most influential players while their defensive improvement, inspired by the recent recruits Dan Burn and Matt Targett, has paid off handsomely. Their Premier League status looks safer by the week.
