Sheffield United were soundly beaten 3-0 by Newcastle United at St. James' Park on Sunday afternoon. The main talking point will be the 50th minute red card picked up by John Egan as he pulled down Joelinton from behind.
Five minutes later, the Magpies were in front through Allan Saint-Maximin with Matt Ritchie adding a second in the 69th minute and Joelinton capping the scoring in the 79th minute to lift Newcastle to 12th in the table.
Story of the match
The Blades had chances inside of ten minutes. George Baldock was fouled, earning the Blades a free kick, but Jonjo Shelvey cleared away Jack Fleck's inswinging free kick. Ollie Norwood was next to try his luck, but his corner just eluded the waiting Jack Robinson.
Chris Basham cleared away Miguel Almiron's low corner before Ritchie called Blades goalkeeper Dean Henderson into action with a fierce 30-yard shot that was turned aside. The hosts were controlling the action now and Egan got in front of Shelvey's long-range effort.
Joelinton and Egan were booked on the half-hour mark before the visitors ended the half with a good spell of play, with an Ollie Norwood curler blocked by Jamaal Lascelles and Egan's header flashed across the Newcastle goal.
Five minutes into the second half, Egan was sent off and Newcastle wasted little time in taking advantage of their numerical superiority. Enda Stevens nutmegged himself trying to deal with Ritchie's low cross and Saint-Maximin beat Henderson at his near post.
The Blades should have been level on 59 minutes, Baldock received a lovely cross field pass from Billy Sharp, who got the ball back from an inviting cross, but he could only steer his downward header from six yards wide. Ten minutes later, Newcastle put the game out of reach.
Ritchie took Isaac Hayden's pass, charged at Baldock and lashed a left-footed drive past Henderson to make it 2-0. After Stevens missed an excellent chance to pull one back, Joelinton rounded off the scoring after Almiron picked him out and he finished past Henderson from eight yards away.
Takeaways
Despite the one-sided scoreline, Sheffield United had some good opportunities throughout the game with Sharp and Stevens missing out on the best chances. Once Newcastle went ahead, the outcome was never in doubt. Perhaps there was a hangover from Wednesday's controversial draw at Aston Villa, but now the Blades must quickly recover as they face Manchester United on Wednesday.
Man of the Match: Matt Ritchie
The Newcastle winger was lively throughout, creating numerous chances before getting on the scoresheet midway through the second half and showing why the Magpies missed him from August to January.