Goals:

0-1: Gayle (1, stroked home the rebound after Krul turned Chamakh’s low strike onto the base of his left-hand post)

1-1: Janmaat (37, dribbled into the area and stabbed home at the second attempt after his first shot had been blocked)

1-2: Puncheon (48, received the ball from Bolasie and juggled to control before drilling home via a slight deflection off Coloccini)

2-2: Aarons (74, headed home from ten yards after Cabella’s corner had flicked off the head of a Palace defender)

3-2: Williamson (88, prodded home from close range after Aarons’ curled effort rebounded off the right-hand post)

3-3: Zaha (90, drilled home from close to the edge of the area after Murray headed a long free-kick back across goal)

Bookings: Mariappa (41, foul), Chamakh (44, foul), Murray (88, foul)

Referee: Mike Jones (Chester) – Got the majority of his decisions right, although might have been quicker to reach for his yellow card as the Crystal Palace fouls mounted up 6

Attendance: 49,226

Entertainment: *****

Match Facts

Shots On Newcastle 4 Palace 6

Shots Off Newcastle 10 Palace 5

Corners Newcastle 9 Palace 4

Fouls Newcastle 11 Palace 20

Offsides Newcastle 0 Palace 1

Newcastle (4-2-3-1):

Krul: Should have got a stronger hand to Chamakh’s first-minute effort and looked hesitant on a number of occasions 5

Janmaat: Was excellent going forward and scored a crucial first-half goal, but was occasionally caught out of position in defence 7

Coloccini: Struggled to cope with the pace and movement of Palace’s attackers and failed to pick up the visitors’ midfield runners 5

Williamson: Wasn’t always the more secure in a defensive sense, but kept on plugging away and claimed his first Newcastle goal 6

Haidara: Was undone by Palace’s wide men on a number of occasions, but made some important blocks 6

Colback: Failed to celebrate his England call-up with a standout display and was overrun in defensive midfield on occasion 5

Sissoko: Looks more comfortable further up the field, with his qualities often blunted when he is instructed to sit deep 5

Cabella: Produced occasional flashes of his obvious ability, but will have to improve his set-piece delivery even though he set up Aarons’ header 6

De Jong: Couldn’t get involved in the game at all and is clearly still lacking sharpness following his early-season lay off 4

Gouffran: A peripheral figure for the most part, although he was at least looking to get beyond Riviere and into the area 5

Riviere: Too many long balls didn’t play to his strengths, but his lack of physical power is a worry against tightly-packed defences 5

Subs:

AARONS (for Gouffran 67): Completely changed the game as he opened his senior account and set up another goal for Williamson 9

Anita (for Janmaat, 78)

Perez (for de Jong, 78)

(not used): Elliot (gk), Dummett, S Taylor, Obertan.

Crystal Palace (4-4-2): Speroni 7; Mariappa 6, Dann 5, Delaney 6, Kelly 6; Puncheon 8, Jedinak 6, Ward 6, Bolasie 7 (Murray 83); Gayle 7 (ZAHA 70, 8), Chamakh 6 (Campbell 51).

Subs (not used): Hennessey (gk), Hangeland, Williams, Bannan.

Man Of The Match: ROLANDO AARONS – It might not say much for the efforts of his team-mates, but Aarons completely changed Newcastle’s attacking outlook after his introduction midway through the second half.