Tonali Man City role and Gordon concern as Newcastle United's luck runs out at Fulham - 5 things

Newcastle United passed up the chance to go to the top of the Premier League when they crashed to a disappointing 3-1 defeat to Fulham.

Eddie Howe's side were second best for the majority of the game at Craven Cottage and were always chasing the match once Raul Jimenez and Emile Smith-Rowe had given Fulham a 2-0 half-time lead. Harvey Barnes' goal almost immediartely after half-time sparked some life into the visitors, but it was Fulham who continued to look more dangerous on the break.

And when Reiss Neilson capitalised on a poor Bruno Guimaraes pass late on to make it 3-1, it merely confirmed a defeat that had looked on the cards for a long time. Here are five things we learned from the game.

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Sandro Tonali must start

The Italian was again left on the bench, with his only start so far coming against Nottingham Forest in the Carabao Cup. Tonali was brought on with 20 minutes to play, barely enough time to influence the game, with Joe Willock starting and Jacob Murphy his half-time replacement. It may be that Tonali is not ready to start - but two 90-minute performances for Italy suggest otherwise.

The cries for Tonali to start against Manchester City next week will only grow louder after the disappointing display at Fulham. United's midfield failed to get a grip at any stage, and the backline was left exposed on numerous occasions.

The midfield set up simply isn't working this season. It's not compact enough and is bypassed with relative ease. Is Tonali the answer? In truth, we don't know, but surely it's time to find out.

What is the best XI?

Four changes today, after more changes against Wolves. What is Eddie Howe's strongest side? Barnes had earned his start after his second-half showing at Wolves, but Joe Willock failed to take his chance after replacing Sean Longstaff in midfield.

Lloyd Kelly has now started three Premier League games at left-back, Lewis Hall has started two. Both have had their ups and downs, but has either deserved to be dropped? Kieran Trippier came in for Tino Livramento at right-back despite no real drop in standards from the former Southampton youngster.

In these days of large squads, it's not unusual to see changes each week, but so many suggests that Howe still isn't settled on his best XI. This performance will not have helped.

Gordon worry

For whatever reason, Anthony Gordon does not look the same player as he was last season. It's a high bar to hit, but the England winger is falling way below it right now. It's easy to speculate how the summer transfer links to Liverpool may have affected him, but he is professional and driven enough to rise above it.

Is he unhappy about playing out of postion on the right, or as a No 10 behind Alexander Isak as he was after Murphy's introduction? Or has fatigue finally caught up with him after almost two years of non-stop football? Let's not forget his contributiions for England Under-21s in their Euros success in the summer of 2023.

He has been United's matchwinner on so many occasions, and there's no better time to show what you're made of then when Manchester City come to St James' Park next weekend.

Service please

Another player who has been a shadow of their normal self is striker Alexander Isak. The Sweden striker has just one goal so far this season, and it's difficult to remember too many chances he's had to add to that. While he's not been at his best, the service he has received as been woefully lacking.

It's up to Isak to create space and opportunities too, of course, but United need to get him involved in games if they are to get the best out of last season's top goalscorer.

Away day blues return

Despite all the talk of United's bad away form, they had only lost two of their last eight games away from St James' Park before today - and one of those was a narrow 3-2 defeat to Manchester United at the end of last season.

However, this was back to the worrying displays such as those at Chelsea and Crystal Palace last spring. Those games sparked something of a response from Newcastlle - and that must happen again if they are to get it out of their system quickly.