Newcastle United's New Year celebrations had already begun in earnest in the Old Trafford away end and visitor's dressing room a full 24 hours before the party is officially due to start.
The game against Manchester United could have been out of sight after half an hour after a powerhouse start which had seen Alexander Isak and Joelinton head home for Newcastle, with Sandro Tonali also hitting the post and their in-form Swedish attacker having another goal disallowed for offside.
While the home side finally decided to make a game of it in the second period, the damage had already been done leaving the Magpies free to see the game out and secure their fourth Premier League win on the spin.
During that run, Eddie Howe's side have scored 13 goals and conceded none, pushing the team up from the bottom half of the table up to fifth place, three points behind Chelsea in fourth.
While beleaguered United manager Ruben Amorim was left discussing a potential relegation battle after the match, it was a very different story for his Newcastle counterpart after guiding the Tyneside club to what was only their second win at Old Trafford in the Premier League era.
“We know this has been an unkind fixture to us for a long, long time,” Howe told the BBC. “To almost break new ground here and win in the manner that we did is really pleasing.
“Early in the season we were on the other end of it by conceding early goals and it makes such a difference [reversing it]. We gave ourselves mountains to climb at times, particularly on the road, and it is great to reverse it the last few games. Those goals have helped with momentum and confidence and from that point we have never looked back.”
“There is still a long way to go but the team is improving,” added Brazilian midfielder Joelinton, who made it 2-0 in the 19th minute during that whirlwind start.
“A good performance away from home today, three points, two goals, clean sheet. Great mentality from the boys from start to finish to defend our goal and score two to win the game.
“Belief is high. We started really well and scored the two goals, we could have scored more but didn't and then we lost a bit of control. At the end the most important is the three points and job done.”
Newcastle's first goal at the Theatre of Dreams came from striker Isak who has spearheaded their recent revival with 11 strikes in as many league games – including a hat-trick in the 4-0 win at Ipswich Town.
After becoming the first man since all-time Premier League top-scorer Alan Shearer to smash through the 20-goal barrier last season – with 25 in all competitions – Newcastle's £63 million record signing, like the team as a whole, started the new campaign slowly.
The 25-year-old now has 13 in total and his form is such that Isak, who is under contract at Newcastle until 2028, has been regularly linked with a move to various clubs including Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain.
Reports suggest Newcastle have slapped a £150m price tag on their prolific attacker and Howe has made clear he wants to build the team around Isak alongside the likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton and Anthony Gordon.
“He has been really, really good,” said the Newcastle coach of Isak. “His all round game is really strong. He can do a bit of everything. Most importantly he needs to be in the right place at the right time to score goals. Early in the match it was a great cross from Lewis Hall and Alex was there with the header.”
“He is amazing,” added Joelinton. “It is so good to have him and to play alongside him because he is one of the best strikers in the world right now and I hope he continues scoring goals and playing amazing because it is good for us.”
Newcastle's 2025 fixtures begins with a visit to Tottenham Hotspur before a crucial run of January fixtures that include a two-legged League Cup semi-final against Spurs' North London rivals Arsenal.
A return to Champions League football next season will now be a key target but ending the club's painful 55-year wait for a major trophy remains the ultimate goal.
“Time will tell how good we are but we are enjoying football right now,” added Joelinton.” We have to be humble and keep our feet on the ground because there is a long way to go.”
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Recycle Reuse Repurpose
New central waste facility on site at expo Dubai South area to handle estimated 173 tonne of waste generated daily by millions of visitors
Recyclables such as plastic, paper, glass will be collected from bins on the expo site and taken to the new expo Central Waste Facility on site
Organic waste will be processed at the new onsite Central Waste Facility, treated and converted into compost to be re-used to green the expo area
Of 173 tonnes of waste daily, an estimated 39 per cent will be recyclables, 48 per cent organic waste and 13 per cent general waste.
About 147 tonnes will be recycled and converted to new products at another existing facility in Ras Al Khor
Recycling at Ras Al Khor unit:
Plastic items to be converted to plastic bags and recycled
Paper pulp moulded products such as cup carriers, egg trays, seed pots, and food packaging trays
Glass waste into bowls, lights, candle holders, serving trays and coasters
Aim is for 85 per cent of waste from the site to be diverted from landfill
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The biog
Fast facts on Neil Armstrong’s personal life:
- Armstrong was born on August 5, 1930, in Wapakoneta, Ohio
- He earned his private pilot’s license when he was 16 – he could fly before he could drive
- There was tragedy in his married life: Neil and Janet Armstrong’s daughter Karen died at the age of two in 1962 after suffering a brain tumour. She was the couple’s only daughter. Their two sons, Rick and Mark, consulted on the film
- After Armstrong departed Nasa, he bought a farm in the town of Lebanon, Ohio, in 1971 – its airstrip allowed him to tap back into his love of flying
- In 1994, Janet divorced Neil after 38 years of marriage. Two years earlier, Neil met Carol Knight, who became his second wife in 1994
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World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
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Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
'Laal Kaptaan'
Director: Navdeep Singh
Stars: Saif Ali Khan, Manav Vij, Deepak Dobriyal, Zoya Hussain
Rating: 2/5
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
