For Newcastle United, this was quite the riposte. How would they cope with the exertions of midweek trips to Europe’s elite, now those are back on the calendar, for the first time in a decade? For rivals hoping for a slip-up and others wondering how they would fare, a trip to winless Sheffield United provided a banana skin ripe for the occasion. Or maybe not. Newcastle blew the Blades to pieces.
It was in effect game over inside 31 minutes, by which point Eddie Howe’s side were coasting, three goals to the good. But Newcastle were relentless, bloodthirsty and ended up bludgeoning the hosts to the tune of eight goals to nil, their biggest Premier League away win in top-flight history. Stuart McCall, the Sheffield United assistant manager, could not bear to look as the substitute Alexander Isak wheeled away in celebration after adding the eighth.
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