Newcastle draw closer to drop as Portsmouth tighten grip on survival

Newcastle 0 Portsmouth 0: MUCH MORE of this and Alan Shearer will be begging to be restored to the sanctuary of the Match of…

Newcastle 0 Portsmouth 0:MUCH MORE of this and Alan Shearer will be begging to be restored to the sanctuary of the Match of the Day sofa. On a night when Portsmouth tightened their grasp on Premier League survival, Newcastle United were left clinging on by finger nails.

It really will take a “great escape” to save Shearer’s side from Championship football after Portsmouth’s right back Glenn Johnson and their ex-Newcastle centre-half Sylvain Distin conspired to push their hosts clearer to relegation.

Shearer dropped Kevin Nolan but restored Fabricio Coloccini to a back four also including the fit again left back Jose Enrique. Further forward there was a starting place in central midfield for Alan Smith while Michael Owen was deployed just behind Mark Viduka and Obafemi Martins.

Yet if Viduka displayed his ring rust when failing to connect with a Damien Duff cross, Coloccini found himself heavily involved at the other end. First the Argentine defender conceded a free kick just outside the area following a foul on David Nugent.

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Portsmouth proceeded to throw Shearer’s defence into disarray when Johnson dribbled round the wall rather than shooting from that dead ball but Coloccini redeemed his reputation by scooping the ball clear for a corner. With Johnson’s defending at right back proving resourceful, Newcastle were struggling to deconstruct Paul Hart’s backline in which Sylvain Distin, himself once of this parish, did well to outpace Martins as the Nigerian accelerated towards the area.

Soon Shearer was appealing for a penalty for an alleged handball by Hermann Hreidarsson when confronted with a Smith shot. Mike Riley waved play on. Hreidarsson did well to divert a Viduka strike but it was not until the 34th minute that Portsmouth’s Sean Davis mustered the first proper shot on target, a curling effort comfortably repelled by Steve Harper.

Soon David James, too, was called to arms, diving low to save a Duff shot near the base of a post. Yet although Smith sent a shot flashing over the bar, Viduka did likewise with a header and, to Shearer’s chagrin, Martins missed a sitter, Hart’s side menaced sporadically on the break.

Bar cueing up that Smith effort, little had been seen of Owen during the first period but, courtesy of a backheel, he prefaced a Viduka strike which prompted a routine James save at the outset of the second half. Later, Portsmouth’s goalkeeper would see his brave gamble in racing way out of his area to deny Martins pay dividends. Coloccini was fortunate not to concede a penalty for felling Peter Crouch as Riley gave him the benefit of the doubt.

James got away with dropping a Duff cross but redeemed himself as Owen finally unleashed a dangerous shot, denying the striker with his legs. With the clock ticking down Shearer replaced Viduka with Andy Carroll. Yet although Martins had a weak penalty claim, most of the better attacking came at the other end.

NEWCASTLE: Harper, Beye, Coloccini, Bassong, Jose Enrique (Guthrie 28), Smith, Butt (Gutierrez 71), Duff, Viduka (Carroll 64), Martins, Owen. Subs not used: Krul, Barton, Lovenkrands, Edgar. Booked: Bassong, Carroll.

PORTSMOUTH: James, Johnson, Campbell, Distin, Hreidarsson, Davis, Belhadj, Hughes, Mullins, Nugent (Pennant 65), Crouch. Subs not used: Begovic, Pamarot, Utaka, Cranie, Kanu, Basinas. Booked: Hreidarsson, Johnson.

Referee: Mike Riley (Yorkshire).

Remaining Fixtures

Saturday – Chelsea v Fulham, Man City v Blackburn, Middlesbrough v Man Utd, Portsmouth v Arsenal, Stoke City v West Ham, Tottenham v WBA, Wigan v Bolton. Sunday – Liverpool v Newcastle, Sunderland v Everton. Monday – Aston Villa v Hull. Sat, May 9 – Blackburn v Portsmouth, Bolton v Sunderland, Everton v Tottenham, Fulham v Aston Villa, Hull v Stoke, WBA v Wigan, West Ham v Liverpool. May 10 – Arsenal v Chelsea, Man Utd v Man City. May 11 – Newcastle v Middlesbrough. May 13 – Wigan v Man Utd. Sat, May 16 – Bolton v Hull, Everton v West Ham, Man Utd v Arsenal, Middlesbrough v Aston Villa, Newcastle v Fulham, Stoke v Wigan, Tottenham v Man City. May 17 – Chelsea v Blackburn, WBA v Liverpool. May 18 – Portsmouth v Sunderland. Sun, May 24 – Arsenal v Stoke, Aston Villa v Newcastle, Blackburn v WBA, Fulham v Everton, Hull v Man Utd, Liverpool v Tottenham, Man City v Bolton, Sunderland v Chelsea, West Ham v Middlesbrough, Wigan v Portsmouth.