Alexander Isak couldn't bear it. After being withdrawn from Newcastle United's eventual 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur with four minutes of normal time - plus 10 additional minutes - remaining, the Swede made his way inside the stadium rather than opting to watch another nervy finish for the Magpies.

Earlier in the week Newcastle recorded a win of a similar nature, beating Manchester United after a rip-roaring opening 45 minutes was followed up by a second-half that saw Eddie Howe's side stuck doing more defending than attacking. The only difference being Newcastle had a two-goal advantage at Old Trafford but just the one as Tottenham pushed for an equaliser.

Ange Postecoglou's side huffed and puffed but couldn't salvage a point as Isak could finally rejoin his co-stars to celebrate his match-winning goal and Newcastle's sixth win on the spin.

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"It was really tough [to watch the last part of the game]. I went inside there until it was a minute left," the in-form striker told TNT Sports moments after the game.

"Obviously when Tottenham are pushing for an equaliser, it feels like it takes ages [for the whistle to blow] but I'm very happy that we we managed to see this one out."

Howe had no choice but to stick around and watch until the whistle as he barked orders and cajoled his players until the very last second. Even as Tottenham picked the ball up from deep with 98 minutes of the scheduled 100 played, the Newcastle boss was screaming on the sidelines, telling his players to press.

“I thought we were dominant in the first-half today, it could or should have possibly been more," he told reporters at full-time. "Yes, Tottenham played well in the second-half and they brought on some quality players that pushed up back at times but we did enough to get over the line.”

Newcastle's fine run goes on but, as mentioned, they have had to really work for their last six points against two teams that would ordinarily be European-chasing rivals. Manchester United and Tottenham may be struggling by their usual standards but they have players that can harm the Magpies.

After a festive period that brought easy wins over the likes of Brentford, Leicester City, Ipswich Town and a 10-man Aston Villa side, Newcastle knew they would be faced with very different types of tests - and have responded by swapping clearcut wins for gritty performances.

Saturday's game in particular was full of needle after the early controversy surrounding Anthony Gordon's sixth-minute goal to rule out Dominic Solanke's fourth-minute header. After that, Newcastle picked up four bookings, were on the wrong end of a big penalty decision and involved in a game littered with heavy challenges.

It was the type of scrappy win that will mean tired bodies ahead of another trip to north London in just a few days time against Tottenham's rivals Arsenal. Howe's men will head into the Carabao Cup first leg with a real spring in their step - even if the Spurs victory has sapped them of some energy.