Habib Beye Watch at Portsmouth

A very good second half performance and a glut of squandered chances by our hosts saw Newcastle come away from the south coast with a valuable three points.

Habib Beye played his part in a solid back four performance with man of the match contender Jose Enrique showing as much desire to get forward as his Senegalese counterpart. Beye almost scored as he rose unattended in the Pompey box only to find his header glanced wide of the mark. It was Habib's best chance of the season so far and his reaction showed that he thought he could have done better. Beye was responsible for a number of timely interventions, none more important that pinching the ball of the head of Crouch whilst lurking at the back post.

Both teams wasted good chances in the first half. Seb Bassong dealt with Crouch effectively but had strike partner Defoe been on form the early exchanges could have been so different. But as Portsmouth spurned chances the Newcastle eleven grew in confidence, no doubt spurred on by magnificent away support. It was Owen who broke the deadlock with a world class finish putting MO firmly in the shop window. Let's just hope the credit crunch affects other owners more than Mr Ashley and we can put a deal together to secure our top scorer into his thirties. Martins was a constant threat: his Roberto Carlos impression bringing the away fans to their feet. Oba followed up with a fine finish, putting David James to the ground before slotting home neatly. Had Defoe been on anything like this form the result could have been a different story as the game was evenly matched throughout. Danny Guthrie got his reward for a fine display with David James less than exemplary with a weak effort at what was a reasonable height for a keeper.

So fine finishing and the rub of the green saw Newcastle trot out winners. A strong bench watched the display and messers Viduka, Taylor, Ameobi and Duff must wonder if they can force their way back into the side. Hopefully this pushes the first eleven on to greater things. Let's hope we can offer them all contracts.

The Habib Beye round-up.
The Sun - 7.0
BBC Sport Player Rater - 6.84
SkySports - 7.0
SkySports Player Rater - 7.5