How United fell short in series of home defeats

Amid all the celebrations on Sunday - richly deserved for Newcastle United’s achievements this season - it will not have been lost on Eddie Howe that this was their fifth home defeat of the campaign.

- By STUART JAMIESON

Clearly the bigger picture is a hugely positive one.

Newcastle qualified for the Champions League and lifted silverware for the first time since 1969, making the past nine months the most successful in living memory for many of us.

Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Aston Villa were all beaten along the way, not to mention league doubles over the likes of Nottingham Forest and Manchester United.

There is so much to congratulate Howe, his coaches and this squad of players for, and every reason to believe that things can get ever better next term, on the back of a positive transfer window.

But if we take a step back as Howe must and no doubt will - we can see a concerning trend when it comes to the matches where United have fallen short, particularly at St James’ Park.

Every season is littered with ifs, buts and maybes for each side, but those anxious minutes after the final whistle against Everton could have been avoided with just a few more points here and there.