Callum Wilson came off the bench to score twice as Newcastle fought back to strengthen their claims on Champions League qualification and edge Southampton towards the trapdoor with a 3-1 win.

Left out of Eddie Howe’s starting line-up despite scoring twice at Everton on Thursday evening, the England striker produced the perfect response after his half-time introduction, cancelling out Stuart Armstrong’s first-half opener and then helping himself to a second after Theo Walcott’s own goal had given the Magpies the lead.

Wilson’s 14th and 15th goals of the season contributed to a fourth win of the campaign over the Saints and an eighth in nine Premier League outings, to keep Newcastle ahead of Manchester United in the race for the top four.

The visitors, who made more than a fist of the game before the break but were eventually overwhelmed, remain in dire trouble with games running out fast.

Howe’s men had exploded out of the starting blocks a week earlier to race into a 5-0 lead over Tottenham inside 21 madcap minutes, but this time around it was Southampton who mustered the first attempt on target within the first 60 seconds when goalkeeper Nick Pope had to get down well to collect Kyle Walker-Peters’ firm drive.

However, Anthony Gordon drilled a seventh-minute attempt into the side-netting after running on to Jacob Murphy’s through-ball and after Pope had beaten away Armstrong’s drive from a tight angle, saw Bruno Guimaraes volley wide after Alexander Isak had flicked on his cross.

Nevertheless, Southampton continued to enjoy extended periods of possession, with the link between James Ward-Prowse, Walker-Peters and Armstrong down the left proving fruitful and with the injured Sean Longstaff’s foraging and drive missing from the Magpies’ engine room, they were well in the game.

However, the home side should have been in front with 19 minutes gone when Isak slid the ball inside to Gordon, who drew defender Lyanco and beat advancing keeper Alex McCarthy only to see his shot clip the outside of a post.

Joelinton glanced wide from Fabian Schar’s header back across goal as the pressure mounted, but to their credit the visitors held firm and attempted to counter-punch at every opportunity, albeit without the cutting edge required to do any real damage.

Murphy, who had swapped flanks with Gordon, curled an attempt over after cutting inside five minutes before the break, but it was the Saints who took the lead seconds later.

Guimaraes was caught in possession by Romeo Lavia on halfway and Carlos Alcaraz raced away before feeding Kamaldeen Sulemana to cross for Armstrong, who stabbed his side in front.

Howe’s response was to replace Gordon with Wilson at half-time and move Isak to a role wide on the left, although neither Sven Botman nor Wilson could make the most of Kieran Trippier’s 53rd-minute free-kick as it arced across goal amid an early onslaught.

But the two strikers combined to devastating effect within nine minutes as Wilson turned home Isak’s cross to level, and Southampton found themselves pinned back deep inside their own half and defending for dear life.

McCarthy tipped Wilson’s 68th-minute header over, and the former Bournemouth frontman thought he had done it again with 16 minutes remaining only for a VAR review to judge him offside.

The reprieve proved temporary as Newcastle flexed their muscles, Walcott unwittingly turning Botman’s flick past his own keeper before Wilson rounded McCarthy and fired gleefully home inside two minutes to secure the points.

Leeds’ relegation fears increased after Jefferson Lerma’s double helped Bournemouth virtually secure their own safety with a vital 4-1 home win.

The Cherries moved level with Chelsea on 39 points and 10 clear of the bottom three after Lerma’s brace was backed up by second-half strikes from Dominic Solanke and Antoine Semenyo.

It all but confirms Bournemouth will be a Premier League club next season and continues Gary O’Neil’s excellent debut campaign in the managerial hotseat.

For Leeds it is a very different story with Patrick Bamford’s first-half goal a mere consolation for Javi Gracia’s side, who remain 16th but are outside of the relegation zone by one point and face Manchester City and Newcastle during the next fortnight.

All eyes pre-match were on Gracia’s starting line-up and he listened to the vociferous calls from the Leeds faithful to start Willy Gnonto, but went with wing-backs for the first time and asked Jack Harrison to fill in on the left.

The visitors thought they had won a spot-kick after only four minutes when Bamford’s pass hit the hand of Matias Vina.

VAR quickly intervened after Christopher Kavanagh pointed to the spot and decided the incident took place outside the penalty area.

Marc Roca’s resulting free-kick was well saved by Neto but Leeds threatened again soon after when Crysencio Summerville got in down the right and teed up Harrison, who saw his effort blocked by Bournemouth defender Smith.

Gracia showed his frustration and the hosts eventually started to get going having won at Southampton on Thursday night.

Dango Ouattara, recalled in place of the injured Marcus Tavernier, saw a shot blocked by Cooper after he cut inside from the right side but Leeds did not heed that warning with the opener arriving after 20 minutes.

Solanke was next to get in down Leeds’ left and while Cooper thwarted Philip Billing’s effort, Lerma was first to the follow up and curled home sumptuously from 18-yards.

Lerma’s fourth goal of the campaign was quickly followed by another.

It was a moment to forget for under-fire Illan Meslier, who flapped at Ryan Christie’s corner and saw Lerma smash home from close-range to make it 2-0 in the 24th-minute.

Leeds and Gracia, having declared this a must-win fixture, were shell-shocked but a lifeline was provided eight minutes later.

Gnonto’s floated cross from the left was met by the unmarked Bamford, who powered home a header to partly make up for his late miss against Leicester in midweek.

One positive was quickly followed by a negative for the away side with captain Cooper forced off injured and Max Wober introduced.

Luke Ayling brought a action-packed first half to an end by blazing over from a tight angle and Leeds continued to push for a leveller after the break.

Summerville had a shot blocked before Weston McKennie volleyed over from Harrison’s free kick.

The next chance went to the influential Gnonto, but the Italian headed wide under pressure after Ayling had sent Harrison’s cross back across goal.

Bournemouth boss O’Neil had seen enough and made a double substitution just past the hour mark before just like in the first half Leeds were hit with a sucker-punch.

With their first attack of the second period, the Cherries made it 3-1 after Ouattara ran off Rasmus Kristensen and teed up Solanke, who took a touch and rifled home his sixth goal of the season after Robin Koch failed to clear.

Even before VAR confirmed Ouattara had been offside the Leeds away support chanted for sporting director Victor Orta to leave and the board to go with their relegation concerns increasing.

Bournemouth captain Neto was forced to deny Roca’s low strike soon after and made a fine double save from Koch and Gnonto in the 72nd-minute but Gracia watched his side concede again when Semenyo’s weak effort went through Meslier in stoppage-time to make it a fourth defeat in five games.

Roberto De Zerbi admits he “made some mistakes” by not affording more first-team opportunities to Billy Gilmour and Deniz Undav before their starring roles in Brighton’s stunning 6-0 win over Wolves.

The peripheral pair were handed just their third Premier League starts for the Seagulls during Saturday’s club-record top-flight victory and seized their chances with standout performances.

Former Chelsea midfielder Gilmour was hailed as the best player on the pitch by his manager, while German forward Undav bagged a brace to claim his first league goals in English football.

De Zerbi’s decision to begin with key trio Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister and Kaoru Mitoma on the bench raised some eyebrows but was quickly forgotten as his reshuffled starting XI delivered in devastating style.

“We are enduring a very tough period, we are playing so many games in a row and we are not used to playing so many games,” the Brighton boss said of his decision to rotate.

“I thought it was good and right to give Mac Allister, Mitoma and Caicedo one game to recover and for Billy Gilmour and Undav and the players who are playing less the possibility to show their quality.

“But the level of Mac Allister, Mitoma and Caicedo is high and to make competition is difficult for Gilmour.

“Gilmour, I think, was the best player on the pitch and I must admit possibly in the past I made some mistakes with him and with Undav because I didn’t give them many possibilities to play.

“But for me it’s difficult. To play without Mac Allister, Mitoma, Solly March, Moises Caicedo, it’s difficult.”

Brighton’s thumping success was the perfect response to a difficult week as Undav, Pascal Gross and Danny Welbeck claimed two goals apiece.

Albion suffered penalty shoot-out heartache at the hands of Manchester United in the FA Cup semi-final last Sunday and then had their European push dented by a 3-1 midweek loss at relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest.

De Zerbi now has a positive selection headache going into Thursday’s rematch with Erik ten Hag’s United in the league but could be without Joel Veltman after he was substituted in visible distress.

The Italian coach conceded he should have withdrawn Dutch defender Veltman earlier, particularly as fellow right-back Tariq Lamptey is sidelined.

“I hope it will be a small problem,” De Zerbi said of Veltman, who has recently been troubled by a hamstring issue.

“It’s important for us, especially in this moment, because we are playing without Lamptey.

“With or without Joel changes a lot of things because only Pascal Gross can play as a right-back.”

Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui urged his players to quickly move on from the Amex Stadium humiliation.

The former Real Madrid manager also feels it is important to put the current situation into perspective given his club were bottom of the table when he took over following the World Cup.

Wplves host local rivals Aston Villa next weekend, with work still to do to eradicate relegation concerns.

“All together we have to be ready for the next fight because we are in the middle of the battle,” said the Spaniard.

“We lost one battle but not the war, so we have to continue to achieve our aim in the end of the season.

“We are aware that we have not done anything yet and we need to get more points.

“We have to recover our energy and our confidence because we have to remember four months ago we were in the bottom.

“It’s a good thing to remember where we were. Now at least we have the possibility to be out of the relegation and that is a very big aim for us.”

Everton manager Sean Dyche hopes captain Seamus Coleman’s return will help bring some much-needed leadership to his relegation-threatened side.

The Republic of Ireland international has missed the last three matches with a hamstring problem and during that time the Toffees have picked up just one point, conceded seven times and even in the goalless draw at Crystal Palace looked over-exposed at right-back.

Coleman is expected to be fit to regain his place in the team and bolster a flank on which has seen stand-ins Mason Holgate, who was sent off for two yellow cards at Selhurst Park, and Ben Godfrey look out of their depth.

The 34-year-old is also the most progressive option of the three when it comes to being confident enough to overlap in attack but it is his experience which may be most needed as they head into a must-win game against fellow strugglers Leicester.

“He’s a very important player with his history and understanding of the club,” said Dyche.

“He has been a loss for us so we do look forward to him being back. Until the second goal (in Thursday’s 4-1 home defeat by Newcastle) it was a very good performance but after the second goal that’s the big challenge for me.

“Where did the mentality go? How quickly did that change? Who re-grips it? Who in our team goes ‘right, OK, let’s re-grip what we’re doing here’ because we weren’t a million miles away? You can’t wait for it to happen.”

The Newcastle defeat was hugely-damaging, not only because it left them with just two more home matches – one of which is against Manchester City – to extend their 69-year top-flight stay, but because of the effect it had on morale.

Players looked shot at the final whistle, at which time Goodison Park was half-empty as the supporters who had lined the streets to greet the team coach with their pyrotechnics and flags had headed for the exits after Newcastle’s third went in.

Asked whether he thought the team had lost the fans, Dyche added: “I don’t think so. I think they will be backing the club to the end.”

The Everton Fan Advisory Board has called for club chair Bill Kenwright to be replaced, saying it has no confidence in his leadership.

The statement from the group, which was formed in 2021 and is officially recognised by the club, comes a day after the relegation-battling Toffees suffered a 4-1 Premier League home defeat to Newcastle to drop to 19th place, and reflects long-running issues between fans and the board.

The FAB has repeatedly wanted increased communication between the club and supporters during a second consecutive season fighting against the drop, and also one in which Everton has been referred by the Premier League to an independent commission over an alleged breach of financial regulations.

Kenwright angered many fans with a letter to supporters last week in which he defended the board’s actions, a statement seen by many as being tone deaf considering the club’s predicament.

Members of the board have not attended fixtures at Goodison Park since January, when the club said there were concerns for their safety.

Friday’s statement from FAB said: “The chair of any organisation has a core responsibility for leading the board, ensuring its focus on strategic matters and direction, overseeing the company’s business, and setting high governance standards.

“We were therefore hugely disappointed at the chairman’s statement last Friday.

“At a critical time for our club, when we most needed leadership, understanding, accountability and a recognition of the strength of feeling and concern across large parts of the fanbase, we got the absolute opposite.

“The situation as it stands is not sustainable, not befitting of our great club and as Evertonians we do not deserve it. After careful consideration, we are therefore making a call of no confidence in the current chair of Everton Football Club.”

The statement went on to demand that majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri implements broader changes in the boardroom.

“The FAB is also calling on the majority shareholder to urgently take charge of securing stronger expertise, experience and more appropriate leadership for our club and ask that he be ready to explain to fans the action and timetable for making this happen,” it said.

“Finally, we want to acknowledge the work of those doing the day to day work within the club in what must be extremely difficult circumstances, as well as Evertonians who have shown time and time again that they will stop at nothing to support our club.”

Kenwright has been on the Everton board since 1989, acquiring a majority holding in 1999 and becoming chair in 2004. He remained in the post following Moshiri’s purchase of a 49.9 per cent stake in the club in 2016, which he increased to 94 per cent in 2022.

Pep Guardiola has warned the Premier League title race is not over and has reminded his Manchester City players what happened last time they beat Arsenal.

City overpowered the leaders 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday to put themselves firmly in the driving seat as they chase a fifth league crown in six years.

The treble-chasing champions are now just two points behind the Gunners with two games in hand and can move top with victory at Fulham on Sunday.

Yet Guardiola remembers well how his side were held to a 1-1 draw by struggling Nottingham Forest just days after winning at the Emirates Stadium in February and does not want a repeat.

The City manager said: “People start to say they have the feeling it’s over, but it’s not over. It will be over when it’s over, and it’s not over.

“We have seven games and in every single game we’ll play for special things for our opponents and ourselves. We have to play our game.

“At the Emirates we won, everyone was happy and saying we had caught Arsenal, but we went to Nottingham Forest and we drew. We played a fantastic game but it was a draw.

“Now we’ve won and we go to Fulham, a special stadium with an incredibly organised team. If we do our job we’ll be closer but nothing is for granted.

“I know it is not 20 games left, but seven games are seven games. It is still a lot of games.”

Arsenal’s challenge has faltered during a miserable April, with their midweek loss at City coming after three successive draws.

Guardiola, however, feels City’s advantage is a slender one and expects Mikel Arteta’s side to bounce back.

He said: “I know Mikel perfectly and the players know that they will not give up.

“If we were 10 points in front I’d say it was almost over but the reality today is we’re two points behind. If the championship finished today they are champions.

“Always I say what happened to them in the last games – three draws, one defeat – can happen to us.

“Impossible? No, it can be possible. You can lose games and drop points in one week.

“We have to be aware of that. If we are it will be easier for us not to drop points.”

After seven successive Premier League wins City – who are also bidding to win the Champions League and FA Cup – appear to be timing their charge perfectly.

“We have good momentum,” Guardiola said. “The feeling is good but we have to prove it again.

“If we don’t get a result at Fulham we will be in the same position as before Arsenal. We have to try to avoid that as much as possible.”

Defender Nathan Ake will miss the game at Craven Cottage as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury but his lay-off should not be a long one.

Guardiola said: “He’s much better, he seems good. The symptoms are good. Still he is not training with the team but I think he won’t be (much) longer.”

Harry Kane has revealed Monday’s crunch talks with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy revolved around the possibility of the club finishing eighth or ninth after he admitted the Newcastle result had been building since last month.

Levy sacked Cristian Stellini following Sunday’s 6-1 thrashing at St James’ Park and consulted Spurs’ player committee, which is understood to comprise captain Hugo Lloris, Eric Dier, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Kane.

Stellini had only been acting head coach for four matches after he stepped up to replace Antonio Conte, who departed a week after his explosive post-match comments at Southampton where he was critical of his own “selfish players” who he insisted did not want to play under pressure.

Kane, speaking after Thursday’s spirited 2-2 draw at home to Manchester United, hinted for the first time the impact Conte’s words had on the squad.

“The chairman asked for a meeting. Obviously I won’t go into what was said but I think it was important (for him) to understand where the players’ heads were at in that moment,” Kane said.

“Obviously coming off the back of that (Newcastle) result and it wasn’t just that result, it had been building up since the international break when we conceded the two goals against Southampton.

“It was an honest conversation of where everyone is at and what we need to try to do to give us the best possible chance to finish the season with something.

“We’re still fighting for fourth place but if it’s not fourth we’ll try to finish fifth or sixth, as high up as we can.

“In this league, it’s so competitive, you can easily end up eighth or ninth if you’re not careful. That’s what it was – to give us the best chance and I’m glad we reacted like that.”

Kane was applauded off at full-time along with the rest of his team-mates on Thursday night but the atmosphere had threatened to turn toxic when Marcus Rashford added to Jadon Sancho’s early opener to make it 2-0 to United at the break.

It left Ryan Mason, in his second caretaker spell in charge, with a big half-time team talk but the 31-year-old exuded calm and saw Pedro Porro and Son Heung-min net in the second period to help Tottenham restore some pride after Sunday’s humiliation in the north east.

Kane added: “It was quite calm. Ryan said not to try to get back in the game in the first five minutes of the second half.

“He said, ‘there’s another 45 minutes, be compact, be ready to hurt them like we did in the first half but now we have to be more clinical’.

“We all said once we get one, we know we can really put pressure on them and that’s what happened. A shame we couldn’t then get the third but overall, when you’re 2-0 down, it was good to get a point out of it.

“I think Ryan’s been great. He’s come in at a really difficult time after that defeat and he’s not had long to implement any style, so it’s all been about motivation and getting some belief back in the boys.

“I’ve known Ryan a long, long time. He’s a great football brain. He sees the game in a really good way, he’s worked under some fantastic managers so far.

“So look, we’re all fully behind him. We really want to work for him and try to finish the season as strong as we can.

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“And he’s a great guy and a great manager. Hopefully we can finish strong and see what happens.”

The Tottenham players reimbursed the away support at Newcastle and while Kane knows it will not make up for the result, he praised their support during Thursday’s draw with United.

“When you travel that far and you’re 5-0 down in 20 minutes, it’s not acceptable on any level,” Kane accepted.

“So, we know it wasn’t going to magically change their feelings or make the result any better but it was still something as a group we wanted to do to try to show we’re all together in this moment.

“And I thought the fans were amazing.”

Kane did not only receive support from the Spurs supporters on Thursday, with the United away following singing they would see him in June amid speculation over his future with just 14 months left on his contract.

But the Tottenham vice-captain insisted: “I heard what they were saying but I’m just focused on this team and trying to finish strongly.”

Ruben Selles insists he is not overlooking Southampton’s January signings due to a lack of quality after his side slid closer to Premier League relegation.

Paul Onuachu and Mislav Orsic were left out of Saints’ squad for Thursday evening’s damaging 1-0 loss to Bournemouth, while £22million club record signing Kamaldeen Sulemana was restricted to 14 minutes from the bench.

Defeat to the Cherries at St Mary’s left bottom club Southampton six points from safety with only five games to go.

Manager Selles, who replaced the sacked Nathan Jones in February, pointed to the size of his squad as he refuted suggestions he does not rate the recent arrivals.

“Mislav was in the squad last week and Onuachu was also in the squad last week, I don’t think it is the same ones (being left out),” said the Spaniard.

“I don’t think it is a lack of quality, it is about decisions.

“I need to make decisions and then I have to give to you some comment on that. It is not about the quality of the boys.”

Ghana winger Sulemana has struggled to nail down a regular starting role following his move from Rennes, while £15.8m former Genk striker Onuachu has not started in the league since February.

Croatia winger Orsic, who cost a reported £6m from Dinamo Zagreb, has played only six minutes for Saints in the top flight and not featured at all under Selles.

“I will not evaluate the board,” replied the coach, when asked if the club had bought players who are not good enough.

“I have a big squad with 30 or 31 players in the first team. And then of course we talk always about the players who are not there.

“I just know that I have to manage a big squad.

“We can defend any decision with some different parameters but the reality is that because we have that big a squad we will always talk about the ones that are not in the squad.”

Southampton’s uphill survival mission continues on Sunday with a daunting trip to Champions League-chasing Newcastle.

Selles is hopeful captain James Ward-Prowse will be fit to lead the team at St James’ Park after being forced off by illness at half-time on a soggy south-coast evening.

“He wanted to play but with the weather conditions that we had during the first half it was too much for him, so he ran out of energy,” Selles said of the England midfielder, who had a sore throat.

“I need to speak with the doctor. I think he will be OK but with those things the doctor needs to let me know.”

Marcus Tavernier’s deflected strike moved Bournemouth seven points clear of the drop zone, while VAR denied Southampton substitute Che Adams a late equaliser due to offside.

Adams’ 89th-minute finish initially looked set to compound Gary O’Neil’s frustration after the visitors were denied a second-half penalty when Jan Bednarek handled Ryan Christie’s cross.

“I don’t see any difference between that and some of the ones we’ve had given against us this year,” said the Cherries boss.

“His arm’s a long way from his body, the ball’s going into a dangerous area, I can’t see why.

“To have it dismissed so quickly…I remember sitting in our dugout when they go against us for ages waiting, they’re watching eight different camera angles being played in slow motion.

“This one, maybe an eight-second check and then we’re told it’s clear. And then I see the replay and I cannot believe that’s not been given as a penalty.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists it is too early to declare his side are “out of the woods” in terms of eradicating the inconsistencies which have blighted their season.

The midweek victory over West Ham made it three wins in succession, extended their unbeaten run to five matches, and maintained their outside chance of sneaking into the top four.

On Sunday at home to Tottenham, Liverpool have a chance to win a fourth league game in a row for only the second time this season – that came in November and December and was separated by the World Cup – but Klopp said it would be wrong to assume everything had now clicked back into place.

“It is, for me too early to speak about consistency,” he said.

“Winning three games is not for me consistent, it is good but can only be the start of something.

“It is about consistency you show in performances even more than results. For the outside world it is the result but for us it must be performances because that is what we work with.

“I am happy with that in the moment because in all the games, as different as they were, I saw a lot of things we want to see in the games and that is then really good.

“There is always something to improve and that’s fine that’s what we try to do as well.

“I am absolutely OK with the moment but it is not that I already trust ourselves that much to say ‘That’s it now, we are out of the woods’ because this season gave us a few lessons I didn’t want to learn, but learned.

“We have to be super-aggressive, super-greedy and show that the most important prize in football is the three points at the weekend and that’s all we have to be focused on.”

Consistency has certainly returned to Klopp’s team selection as he has made just one change over the course of the last four matches and that was the precautionary resting of Ibrahima Konate for Wednesday’s victory over the Hammers.

Coincidentally it was his replacement at centre-back Joel Matip who scored the winner but Konate is likely to return at Anfield on Sunday.

But Klopp acknowledges having a stable team has led to better baseline performances.

“We didn’t change because we won the game before, we didn’t change because we set the team up slightly differently and wanted to give the boys the chance to find some rhythm and get used to different things,” he added.

“Number two is I said the ticket into this team will always be the readiness to defend and to counter-press and I like a lot of that what I saw.

“And if you say that you have to give the credit for it as well, so you can buy the ticket again.

“What it created was a situation in training where the boys who didn’t start showed properly up so we could have changed quite a lot because they really knock on the door.

“The difference is we had time to train. When you have time to train they can show up because in a normal week with three games you have recovery and the only guys who train are the ones who didn’t play the game before and the next day is second-day recovery for the guys who played.”

Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper says there is “no ill feeling” with Jonjo Shelvey after their recent falling-out and the midfielder will be available for the visit to Brentford.

Shelvey, who has been carrying a knock, was left out of Wednesday’s win over Brighton as a result of his tantrum at also being omitted from the previous match at Liverpool.

Cooper says the incident has been blown out of proportion and their relationship is fine ahead of the crucial run-in.

Asked whether he was left out against Brighton as a result of his behaviour prior to the Anfield trip, Cooper said: “And a knock to be honest. Sometimes things are not exactly what they are and we have to accept that.

“Everyone is good, we are looking forward. He is really well liked in the dressing room and we need everybody in the situation we are in, with the injuries we are picking up.

“There is no ill feeling in any way, shape or form, regardless of what may or may not have been said. We need everyone to stick together and get behind everybody and that’s what we’re doing.

“Jonjo is available. He was carrying a knock last week and there was one or two other things, it is not a big a drama as was said, in some ways it was a training ground thing, but it is past us and we are looking forward to going to Brentford. He is 100 per cent available.”

Neco Williams will not be available after he suffered a fractured jaw in the win over Brighton and will miss the rest of the season following surgery.

The injury came just as the Wales international had regained his place in the team.

Cooper said: “Not good, when you saw the collison on the pitch, you feared the worst and unfortunately it is bad news, with the fractured jaw.

“He has had an operation and it has gone well in a difficult situation for him and it rules him out for the season and now he is on the road to recovery.

“It is a difficult situation for him, he got himself back into the team recently and was playing well and a confidence about him and had a spring in his step. It’s a blow for us and a blow for him.”

Forest will assess Moussa Niakhate, who suffered a hamstring injury against the Seagulls, and Taiwo Awoniyi, who suffered a shoulder problem.

On Niakhate, Cooper said: “It is still inconclusive with that one, we will have to see with regards to tomorrow but we definitely did the right thing, he felt something in the game and we were able to make the change but regarding the extent of his availability we will have to see on that.”

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe is confident there is more to come from his own “Thierry Henry” after seeing record signing Alexander Isak light up the Premier League.

The Magpies’ £60million summer recruit has been in sensational form since returning from a four-month injury lay-off, taking his tally for the season to 10 goals as he battles Callum Wilson for the right to lead the line.

However, it was a stunning assist in Thursday night’s 4-1 win at Everton which drew comparisons with the mercurial Frenchman as he picked up the ball on halfway and skipped past three defenders on a mesmerising run before crossing for Jacob Murphy to tap in at the far post.

Asked if he could see the comparison, head coach Howe said: “Yes, I can, I can see the comparisons there.

“Everyone is different, there are no two players that are the same, but I do think he has some of the characteristics Thierry had.

“He’s certainly got the speed and a similar build and frame. The footwork for the assist was truly remarkable, really, and I think he’s got a lot of potential to improve and get better.

“But it’s been a great start for him here.”

Eyebrows were raised when Newcastle opted to invest so heavily to prise the now 23-year-old away from Real Sociedad in their search for added firepower, but their faith has been richly rewarded.

Isak scored a stunning debut goal at Liverpool in August, but after just three appearances for the club, damaged a thigh muscle on international duty with Sweden and was sidelined until January.

However, his rich vein of form has been key to the Magpies’ surge into Champions League contention – he has scored four times in his last five games – although his intervention at Goodison Park came from the bench as Howe rotated his in-form frontmen.

Asked if Isak has proved an even better player than he had anticipated, he said: “I don’t think you ever know with absolute certainty.

“Anyone who says that would be lying because until you work with a player close-up and you see them every day, I don’t think you ever know what their true capability is.

“But we’ve been very impressed with everything that he’s delivered to this point, not just technically on the pitch, but his character and how he’s handled certain situations. He’s been first class.”

Nevertheless, Isak will have to wait to see if he gets another chance to impress when struggling Southampton visit St James’ Park on Sunday with Howe having rested Wilson for the trip to Brentford earlier this month after he had scored twice at West Ham, and then done the same to the Swede following his double against Tottenham on Sunday.

What the papers say

Former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann is “at the top” of Tottenham’s four-man shortlist to be their next head coach, the Daily Telegraph says. However, the 35-year-old, who was sacked by the German giants on March 23, has no termination clause in his contract so is continuing to be paid his €12 million (£10.6 million) annual salary. Nagelsmann has more than three years left on the five-year deal he signed.

The same paper reports Arsenal are intending to step up their transfer planning after guaranteeing their place in next season’s Champions League, with West Ham midfielder Declan Rice high on the list of targets. The 24-year-old is reported to be wanted by the Gunners this summer as they look to add more dynamism and technical quality in the centre of the pitch.

Elsewhere, Joao Felix is looking set to stay at Chelsea for another year even though the club will not be playing in the Champions League, The Sun writes. The 23-year-old forward reportedly wants assurances from the incoming permanent boss – expected to be Mauricio Pochettino – that he will get game time.

The Sun also reports – via RMC Sport – that Manchester United are preparing a bid for Monaco right-back Vanderson. The 21-year-old has impressed since joining the Ligue 1 side in January last year and the Red Devils could face competition from several other Premier League sides.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Jude Bellingham: Spanish outlet Marca reports Real Madrid officials will travel to Germany this week in a bid to convince the 19-year-old Borussia Dortmund and England midfielder to join the Spanish club this summer.

Casemiro: German outlet Marca says the 31-year-old Manchester United and Brazil midfielder is a summer transfer target for Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich.

Ryan Mason promised Tottenham’s players will stick together between now and the end of the season after they staged an impressive second-half comeback to draw with Manchester United.

Spurs were coming off the back of a 6-1 drubbing away to Newcastle on Sunday and looked in trouble again when Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford fired United into a 2-0 half-time lead.

But Mason rallied his players at the break and they hit back strongly in the second half, goals from Pedro Porro and Son Heung-min rescuing the result and reminding home fans of their team’s powers of recovery after the debacle on Tyneside.

That result led to the sacking of interim coach Cristian Stellini by Daniel Levy, and the Tottenham chairman was the target of Spurs fans’ anger in the first half when it looked like their team would be overrun.

Mason, who has been installed until the end of the season whilst Levy searches for a permanent successor to Antonio Conte, said he was proud of his players for their fight and the way they went at United with the Newcastle result fresh in their minds.

“It’s been difficult after Sunday because the manner in which we lost wasn’t nice for anyone to be involved with,” said Mason. “But the most important thing now until the end of the season will always be to stick together as a team.

“Football – small details can change games, change results but ultimately the most important thing is to be together. And to everyone – the fans, the outside world looking in, they’ll see a team that’s solid and united together. And when you are that you have a chance of success.

“(We have) big character, big personalities, stuck together, kept believing and acted as a team throughout the whole game. That pleases me after what happened at the weekend because we probably didn’t have that as a group.

“And off the back of how the first half went in terms of the scoreline, to go out at half-time and stick together, fight for each other and really got our fans involved, I thought they helped us massively, and it’s pleasing.

“It proves a lot to me what I already thought about this group but to see that on to the pitch is a good feeling.”

Though admirable, the result did little to revive Spurs’ rapidly diminishing hopes of catching United in the race to qualify for the Champions League.

The gap to Erik ten Hag’s side in fourth stands at six points with Tottenham having played two games more.

Mason was asked whether at 2-2 he was tempted to go after the win that would have gone some of the way towards reeling in United and breathing life into the top-four scramble.

“We invested so much energy into getting that scoreline at 2-2,” he said. “It felt like we were almost acting a little emotionally to try and get that third, and sometimes that’s great but at the same time I felt there were a couple of moments when we looked a bit leggy, a bit open unnecessarily.

“So we changed it a little bit – still try and win the game but at the same time recognise the game and moment we were in.

“I felt once we had got the second goal the lads had sort of invested so much energy into it that we went a little bit flat and they took a little bit of control of the game without really creating anything.

“To come off 2-2 off the back of going in 2-0 down at half-time is a positive.”

Ten Hag reflected on a game in which, after a solid first half in which they dominated Spurs and were clinical with their chances, control of the match ultimately got away from them once they lost their dominance of the ball after the break.

“After half-time, there was a difference,” said Ten Hag. “We lost the control. We were not ball-secure. Then you have to go into the fight.

“When you lose your battles, you don’t block the crosses, when you don’t squeeze out, you don’t block shots, you concede goals and that’s what happened.

“Finally you have to be satisfied and take that point.”

Nottingham Forest defender Neco Williams says he is “gutted” that he will miss the rest of the season after sustaining a fractured jaw in his side’s 3-1 win over Brighton.

Forest claimed their first win in a dozen matches on Wednesday to boost their hopes of avoiding relegation, moving one point above the Premier League bottom three after seeing off the Seagulls.

But victory came at a cost as Williams suffered a nasty blow after an inadvertent collision with team-mate Brennan Johnson.

He was stretchered off and immediately taken to hospital, where he had surgery and is set to return home on Friday afternoon, according to a statement from Forest on Thursday evening.

While Forest did not give an indication of how long he would be out for, the Welshman himself indicated he will play no further part in the campaign with five matches remaining.

He wrote on Twitter: “Absolutely buzzing the lads got the win yesterday but at the same time I am gutted to say my seasons over for sustaining a broken jaw.

“I will do everything I can to help my teammates bring home those points every game.”

The 22-year-old has made 34 appearances in all competitions this season since joining Forest from Liverpool last summer in a transfer worth £17million.

Ruben Selles vowed Southampton will “fight until the very last point” after his side slipped closer to Premier League relegation following a damaging 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth.

Marcus Tavernier’s second-half winner at St Mary’s left the the division’s bottom club six points from safety with five games to go.

Beleaguered Saints thought they had snatched a dramatic draw but Che Adams’ 89th-minute effort was disallowed for offside following VAR intervention.

A painful defeat to their south-coast rivals inflicted a club-record 11th home league loss of the season on Southampton, with lingering hopes of survival fading fast.

“We are going to go and try to put a performance in every game to try to win, and we are going to do it until the very end,” said Selles.

“I know it’s only five games to play. But we are professionals and we will fight until the very last point.

“I know now it’s hard, I know the table is looking like it’s a difficult one but we are going to give it a try.”

Southampton lacked attacking thrust and urgency for much of a miserable evening played in soggy conditions.

Aside from Adams’ disallowed effort, the home side rarely threatened an equaliser following Tavernier’s deflected effort in the 50th minute.

“It’s a disappointing night, we came with the intention to put in a good performance and we obviously didn’t,” said Selles.

“Some of the things that can go against us, they went against us.

“Even the offside goal, it’s a couple of centimetres but it is offside. It was a hard night.”

Southampton lost captain James Ward-Prowse for the second half due to a sore throat and he will be assessed before Sunday’s visit to high-flying Newcastle.

Bournemouth moved on to 36 points – seven clear of the drop zone – following a significant win over their near neighbours.

Cherries boss Gary O’Neil initially feared substitute Adams was onside but felt his team were due a favourable VAR call.

O’Neil insists Bournemouth still have work to do to ensure safety following a third consecutive away success.

“It’s a big win for us, of course,” he said. “The performance was pleasing. I thought we were by far the better side today.

“The lads are recovering for Sunday (at home to Leeds), there’s no celebration, there’s not talk of points tallies. I can easily see 36 points going down this year. We won’t be resting.”

Speaking about the disallowed goal, he said: “We were due one to go our way. We’ve had some tight ones go against us.

“There were a few screams on the bench when it was ruled out. I didn’t think it was going to be.

“We had some footage in front of us which wasn’t clear. That’s a horrible moment as a coach when you’re sat there and waiting for someone to decide.

“But the players didn’t deserve to suffer that today, so pleased that we had a VAR check go our way for the first time this season, I think.”

Match-winner Tavernier limped off 12 minutes from time with a hamstring issue.

“He seems to think it isn’t too serious,” said O’Neil. “Hopefully it was just a touch of cramp.”