EPL: Nottingham Forest 1-1 Newcastle — Late Equalizer Boosts Survival Hopes

Forest edge Closer to safety after late draw with Newcastle

Forest fought back late to draw with Newcastle, moving closer to Premier League safety while the Magpies confirmed their top-flight status for next season.

Harvey Barnes put Newcastle ahead, but Elliot Anderson’s late goal against his former club secured a vital point for Forest. Both sides remain in contrasting positions heading into the final games...

Nottingham Forest moved closer to Premier League safety after a gritty 1-1 draw with Newcastle United, stretching their unbeaten league run to eight matches with four wins and four draws. The result leaves them in a position where safety could be confirmed before their next game.

Forest shifted focus back to avoiding relegation after a midweek 4-0 defeat to Aston Villa knocked them out of the Europa League. Newcastle provided the opposition, having just ended a four-game losing streak, though they began the day 18 points adrift of their total at the same stage last season.

Still, Newcastle began strongly, keeping Forest pinned back and causing problems down the right. They created pressure but couldn’t produce a clear chance.

Vitor Pereira wasn’t happy with how the first 15 minutes unfolded and switched to a 4-4-2, the system that had worked well for Forest recently.

The change turned the game in Forest’s favor. Dilane Bakwa troubled Newcastle’s defense a few times, most notably with a cross that forced Nick Pope into a mistake and nearly allowed Jair Cunha to tap in the loose ball.

Despite Forest’s improved spell, the best opening before halftime fell to Newcastle. Nick Woltemade set up William Osula, but his low drive was quickly closed down by Matz Sels.

Still, Newcastle began strongly, keeping Forest pinned back and causing problems down the right. They created pressure but couldn’t produce a clear chance.

Vitor Pereira wasn’t happy with how the first 15 minutes unfolded and switched to a 4-4-2, the system that had worked well for Forest recently.

The change turned the game in Forest’s favor. Dilane Bakwa troubled Newcastle’s defense a few times, most notably with a cross that forced Nick Pope into a mistake and nearly allowed Jair Cunha to tap in the loose ball.

Despite Forest’s improved spell, the best opening before halftime fell to Newcastle. Nick Woltemade set up William Osula, but his low drive was quickly closed down by Matz Sels.

After halftime, Bruno Guimaraes tried a speculative free kick that just curled wide as Newcastle pushed to improve on their league-low tally of four second-half away goals this season.

Making only his third Premier League start of the campaign, Taiwo Awoniyi used his strength to hold off Sven Botman and force a save from Pope. Moments later, Pope had to make two stops in quick succession to keep out Guimaraes.

With Newcastle back on top, William Osula rattled the crossbar from a free kick. Shortly after, substitute Harvey Barnes ran onto a clever Jacob Ramsey through ball and finished calmly past Sels.

 

It's eight matches unbeaten for @NFFC, they're now seven points clear of the relegation zone 🌳 pic.twitter.com/uO5OuW7KS8

— Premier League (@premierleague) May 10, 2026

Forest pushed for an equalizer, and in the 88th minute a quick one-two between James McAtee and Elliot Anderson set up the latter to fire home from a tight angle against his former club.

That was the final key moment of the game. The result leaves Forest with only one win in 16 Premier League meetings with Newcastle, but the home fans won’t mind. A point keeps them on course for safety, and they could be mathematically secure before the weekend ends if West Ham lose to league leaders Arsenal.

For Eddie Howe’s Newcastle, a top-half finish is now the realistic target. The draw also ended any faint mathematical chance of relegation.