Crystal Palace (A) player ratings: NUFC made Jean-Philippe Mateta look like prime Didier Drogba here

A Newcastle side that had taken ten points from the last 12 available in the league and seemingly rediscovered its form was battered by Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park this evening, with the hosts fully deserving of their 2-0 victory.

In one of our worst showings of an at-times dismal campaign, Eddie Howe's decision to stick with the same starting eleven and 3-4-3 formation from the 4-0 home win over Spurs last time out looked worse and worse the more the minutes ticked by.

Emil Krafth and Dan Burn were asked to do far too much in possession either side of Fabian Schär—who was neutered in the middle of the three under Palace's high press—and Jacob Murphy put in a truly horrendous shift at right wing-back.

Martin Dúbravka was typically unreliable when it mattered most and, while Elliot Anderson, Bruno Guimarães, Anthony Gordon, and Alexander Isak gave everything they had, none of them were anywhere near their best going forward.

Sean Longstaff started brightly but his game descended into farce at points—though he surely should've won a late penalty—while Harvey Barnes barely made an impact on a contest in which the Magpies were second-best in every department.

Prepare yourself for one of the lowest sets of ratings ever awarded by the team here at NUFC News, though we have just about managed to avoid the temptation of dishing out a '1' this time...

This was another low point in what has been a rollercoaster of a season

Martin Dúbravka – 3

His positioning for the opening goal has to be questioned, with Mateta given far too much of the goal to aim for when one-on-one, and he was an embarrassment for the second when being nutmegged from close range. We can't wait for Nick Pope to get back from injury.

Emil Krafth – 4

The Swede looked shaky at the outset and didn't improve much throughout the game, but he was hardly the biggest offender on a difficult night. Playing him on the right of a back three asks him to do far too much in possession and he's never been the greatest on the ball.

Fabian Schär – 5

Schär made the first key defensive interventions in the contest but struggled to find passing options for much of it. He didn't cover himself in glory for the opening goal, either, not being tight enough for Mateta in the build-up. This was one of his poorest displays of the season.

Dan Burn (c) – 3

Burn struggled in the opening period, looking typically unsure in possession and taking a couple of unnecessary risks that were almost punished. He was poor for Palace's opening goal too, overcommitting and being done by a one-two between Ayew and Mateta.

Jacob Murphy – 2

He started woefully at right wing-back, giving away possession almost every time he got the ball, including from a routine throw-in. He didn't get any better after half-time, again giving up possession in the lead-up to Palace's opener, and was thankfully brought off on the hour.

Sean Longstaff – 3

He began the game the brightest of everyone black and white, showing good composure and trying to play forward at every opportunity. Things unravelled badly from there, unfortunately, but he surely should have had a penalty when pulled back by Hughes in the 76th minute.

Bruno Guimarães – 6 ⭐️

It feels silly to give anyone the star after that result, but Bruno was easily our best performer yet again. The Brazilian took a while to get into the game but created our first sight of goal with an excellent lofted through ball for Isak and was always trying to drive us forward.

Elliot Anderson – 5

The youngster was one of our brighter spots in the first half in his new left-wing-back role, covering a lot of ground and trying to play on the front foot whenever possible. He was soon dragged down to the level of his teammates, though, and did as much poorly as he did well.

Anthony Gordon – 5

Although there was no lack of effort on show from Gordon, he found it hard to get into the game from his slot on the right wing even when given a license to roam midway through the first half. Very little he tried came off and he picked up another unnecessary yellow card.

Alexander Isak – 6

Our star striker didn't take the first chance that came his way when released by Bruno, but he didn't do much wrong before being challenged by Henderson. Otherwise, he made our best opportunity of the game and looked sharp throughout without getting much service.

Harvey Barnes – 4

Barnes failed to make the right decision in our first major attack, perhaps being too unselfish and trying to be too clever when trying to flick it to the overlapping Gordon. He barely impacted the contest otherwise and was unsurprisingly brought off for Hall on the hour.

Even having a couple of options on the bench couldn't save our bacon

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Callum Wilson – 5

He only had seven touches in his 31 minutes of action but showed a couple of flashes that should be a cause for optimism moving into the season's final five games.

Lewis Hall – 5

While it's always nice to see Hall on a football pitch in the black and white he wasn't able to make much difference here. He still should've started the game, though.

Matt Ritchie – 5

He managed to get a rare couple of touches in his very brief cameo on the right wing, but the game was well gone by the time he arrived on the pitch.

Joe White – 5

Joined Ritchie for a pointless cameo with the match already over and also managed to get a couple of touches, completing both of his passes.

Next up for the Magpies is Sheffield United at home in the league

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Having gone 11 days without a game, we're straight to business after this disappointment with Chris Wilder's side rocking up to St James' Park for a 3 p.m. BST kick-off on Saturday afternoon.

While they gave Manchester United a scare tonight at Old Trafford they are comfortably the worst side in the division and anything less than a two-goal victory would be hard to swallow.

We're not expecting another 8-0, but if we're serious about finishing sixth we need to be beating the Blades comfortably then going to Burnley and taking another three points.

Howay the lads!