BRU LITTLE Brazil ace Guimaraes heaven LEGEND!
BRUNO GUIMARAES took the biscuit by wrapping up the points for Newcastle.
The Brazilian, who recently swapped his shirt with a fan for a double pack of Kinder biccies, left Nottingham Forest with a bitter taste in their mouths.
Not only did he strike a superb winner – his second goal of the game – but his clincher had a sourness for home fans who felt a VAR call had gone against them.
At 2-2 Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi was felled by Newcastle keeper Martin Dubravka, but officials opted not to overturn referee Anthony Taylor’s call. It was a reprieve for Eddie Howe’s side who twice let their lead slip. The home side spent most of the opening minutes without the ball but still came closest to scoring when a rapid counterattack ended with Morgan Gibbswhite skewing his low shot the wrong side of the post.
Newcastle resumed their control and although Matz Sels was able to scramble across his goal to deny Sean Longstaff, the opening goal soon followed.
It owed much to Forest’s dozy defending at a corner, though, as when Kieran Trippier struck a huge, looping cross to the far post there was no one there except a lurking Guimaraes.
He produced a classy finish on the volley for only his second goal of the season.
Forest were having to live off scraps of possession, which made it crucial they made the most of them.
Anthony Elanga failed to do so when he was played in by Awoniyi, allowing Dubravka to make the save.
But Elanga learned his lesson quickly and when another counter-attack enabled Gibbswhite to thread a superb pass to him, the speedy Swede made no mistake.
But Toon were on top again when a routine delivery into the Forest box was not dealt with and Sven Botman’s header across goal was dispatched by Fabian Schar.
What Forest lack in discipline, though, they often make up for in fighting spirit.
Having fallen behind in the 43rd minute they managed to drag themselves level in the fifth minute of added time before the break.
Callum Hudson-odoi showed his intent with a neat give-and-go and was rewarded when his shot deflected off Lewis Miley to leave
Dubravka wrong-footed. At 2-2 the momentum at the start of the second half was all with Forest.
Their pressure seemed to have paid off when Awoniyi broke clear and fired home, but he was rightly judged offside.
Minutes later, Awoniyi was clear again, but the merest toe-end from Botman and a VAR check that went against the striker kept the scores level.
It proved a critical call by the officials as Guimaraes pounced on a sloppy pass from Elanga in the 66th minute and then fired home a magnificent winner.