AN EMOTIONAL Jonas Gutierrez admitted his final game for Newcastle United had been “like a movie” after his first goal for more than two years helped secure the 2-0 win over West Ham that confirmed the club’s Premier League survival.

While Hull’s failure to beat Manchester United meant the Magpies would have survived no matter what they did in their final fixture, a first win in 11 games eased the tension that had built to a nerve-jangling climax in the last two months.

Moussa Sissoko’s 54th-minute header put Newcastle in the driving seat at St James’ Park, but it was Gutierrez’s deflected strike with five minutes left that effectively confirmed the club’s top-flight status.

This time last year, the 31-year-old was about to embark on a life-saving course of chemotherapy after he was diagnosed with testicular cancer, and he readily admits there were times when he was not even sure if he would be able to return to England, let alone resume his footballing career with the Magpies.

However, after receiving the all-clear last November, he battled his way back into Newcastle’s first team, and with his contract due to expire next month, yesterday’s decisive strike ensured he was able to sign off his seven-year Magpies career on a high.

“I couldn’t have imagined something like this happening – it was like a movie,” said Gutierrez, who has accepted he will not be offered a new deal in the North-East. “It is like a dream after everything I have had to go through this year. To score a goal in the last game, when we were fighting to stay in the Premier League, was fantastic. I really appreciate that moment and am so proud.

“I am so proud about the result because this club and these fans did not deserve to be in this situation. To have gone to the Championship is not the right level for this club. I respect the Championship because I have played in there the last time and I know how tough it is, but I think this club should be in the Premier League, and ideally the top five.”

Yesterday’s victory ensured Newcastle would not suffer the ignominy of dropping into the Championship for the second time in six years, but while the Magpies produced their best performance in months to clamber into 15th position, the victory should not gloss over the chronic failings that have been apparent in the second half of the season.

John Carver has overseen a disastrous run of results since replacing Alan Pardew in late December, but the former assistant insists that he still wants to be considered for the head coach role on a permanent basis.

In a rare television interview prior to kick-off, Mike Ashley revealed that managing director Lee Charnley has been charged with the task of appointing a long-term head coach, with time of the essence given the need for major changes in every aspect of the club’s operations.

Steve McClaren, who turned down Newcastle’s approach ahead of the final three games of the season, is likely to be available after suffering a breakdown in his relationship with the board at Derby County, but Carver remains determined to hold on to his current position.

“I still want this job,” he said. “To go through what I’ve been through in the last four months, anyone would have found it difficult.

“The fact that Mike is saying he wants to win something is fantastic. He wants this club to be united. We all want to win things, and it’s a big summer. We have to invest, and Mike knows that.

“I’ve had assurances that we’re going to spend money. The fans can now go away, have their summer holidays and look forward to players coming through the door.”

Whether Ashley’s pre-match promises to invest meaningfully come to fruition remains to be seen, but after maintaining a wall of silence throughout his eight-year reign, it was nevertheless intriguing that the 50-year-old chose yesterday to face the Sky Television cameras.

Looking surprisingly nervous, Ashley spelled out his determination to remain in charge for the foreseeable future, and admitted he could not have foreseen yesterday’s frantic battle to avoid the drop when Pardew departed with Newcastle in ninth position in the wake of December’s win over Everton.

“I couldn’t really have imagined it,” said Ashley. “Certainly from Christmas, I couldn’t have anticipated being anywhere near this situation. Obviously, after the last couple of weeks, I’m still a bit shocked by where we’ve found ourselves.”

When asked where the responsibility lay for Newcastle’s plight, he added: “My door. Financially, the club wouldn’t have been as strong (had he not replaced Freddie Shepherd as chairman), but unfortunately that isn’t really good enough.

“It’s no good carrying on with the same horse and cart scenario. We might have the cart financially, but we need to bold the horse on to that and that is what we are going to do.”