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Joelinton and Callum Wilson will make the headlines when Newcastle United sealed three points against Crystal Palace, but there is a forgotten hero in the ranks.
While the forwards did what they paid for and Karl Darlow once again kept Newcastle in position for victory, Ciaran Clark’s performance should not go unnoticed.
In just his second game in 286 days after suffering an injury in February, Clark is rapidly rediscovering the way that convinced Steve Bruce to keep him last summer.
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Clark was about, ironically, to join Crystal Palace in the 2019 preseason before Bruce persuaded him to stay on Tyneside.
After an impressive season, the injury was a major blow, and his return to the starting eleven against Chelsea last weekend was one of the only positives on an otherwise gloomy afternoon.
Six days later, Clark had a quiet hand on Newcastle’s crucial three points at Selhurst Park.
While those watching will remember Federico Fernandez’s last block late in the second half when Christian Benteke was in goal, Clark’s orderly and consistent performance could go unnoticed.
However, statistics rank him as one of the best on the field against Palace: most air battles won (7), most interceptions (3) and most clearances (6), three of the They arrive in the middle of the second half when Palace began to spice up United’s box.
It was a good old-fashioned media performance, no frills, just getting the job done, and it helped Karl Darlow score his first clean sheet since day one of the season.
Clark was also calm while in possession, which was important considering the magpies had much more ball than they used (42%). He made the most passes in the game (50) with 76% passing accuracy (6th of 13) but perhaps most crucially he delivered 63% of his long ball attempts with precision (5 of 8.)
With Steve Bruce struggling to find the right formation, switching to four at the back, it’s important that he have a solid center pair to rely on, especially when club captain Jamaal Lascelles is ruled out.
Bruce was determined to keep Clark at the club and had to do everything he could to dissuade him from leaving in pursuit of first team football, the Republic of Ireland international has shown once again why that conversation before friendly Hibernian was perhaps one of the important that Bruce has had as a Toon head coach.
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