Thunderbolt strike sinks Leicester City's hopes against Newcastle

Leicester City's unbeaten league record was washed away on the banks of the Tyne but Nigel Pearson's men went down with full honours at St James' Park.

City were sunk by a spectacular Danny Guthrie strike at the start of the second half.

But, until that moment, it had been plain sailing for City against the Championship title favourites and fallen Premier League giants.

They had created the better chances until Guthrie unleashed his thunderbolt of a strike and overall they deserved something from their visit to the north east.

Steve Howard completed his remarkable comeback from a hamstring injury to line up for City on the ground where he was a season-ticket holder as a boy.

Martyn Waghorn also made his comeback from a similar injury and took his place on the bench as City boss Nigel Pearson picked an attacking side for his first return to the club where he spent 16 months as a coach and had two spells as a caretaker manager.

Pearson has a simple philosophy – to try to win every game. That might sound an obvious belief to have but most clubs do not go to a place like St James' with the sole intention of taking the game too their illustrious opponents.

City showed no signs of being overawed by their surroundings and were the more accomplished and well-drilled side.

They certainly created the better chances in the first half and were unfortunate not to have scored in the first period for the first time in the league this season.

Steve Harper was certainly the busier of the two goalkeepers and he produced a good save to deny Howard what would have been a dream goal in the 21st minute. Matt Oakley swung over a useful corner and Howard evaded his marker but his header was beaten away by the United keeper.

Harper produced an even better save in the 37th minute when Howard, who was proving to be a nuisance to the Geordie defence, was fouled by Alan Smith.

Paul Gallagher, who was employed in a wide midfield role, curled in a sweet free-kick which looked destined for the bottom corner but Harper pulled off a spectacular one-handed save.

Right at the end of the first period City had another golden opportunity when Dany N'Guessan picked up a loose Joey Barton pass in midfield and released Matt Fryatt, who raced to the edge of the area and cut inside. But he curled his shot wide with Howard and Gallagher in great positions just to his left.

United, who had to field Kevin Nolan in attack alongside teenage debutant Nile Ranger because of a striker injury crisis, rarely troubled the City defence.

Their best opportunity came in the 10th minute when they were able to break four-on-four and Geremi fed Ryan Taylor wide on the right. He picked out Nolan on the edge of the box but his shot was saved by Chris Weale.

Besides that, the only other moment of concern for Pearson was when the St James' crowd appealed loudly for a penalty when a Ryan Taylor cross appeared to cannon off Bruno Berner and then Wayne Brown's hands in the area, but their appeals fell on deaf ears.

City were made to pay for not taking advantage of their impressive first-half performance when Guthrie, who was always on the periphery in the first half, brought the Geordie fans to life with a great strike.

He picked the ball up 25 yards from goal and beat Jack Hobbs far too easily before unleashing a thunderous right-foot shot past Weale to give the hosts the lead.

Newcastle now had their tails up and Geremi went close with another long-range attempt as City looked uncomfortable for the first time in the game.

Smith, Nolan and Barton all had good opportunities to add to Newcastle's tally as City were caught going in search of the equaliser, but they did not take them.

A second goal would have been very harsh on City, who can take great heart from their performance because they gave Newcastle an uncomfortable night. City now go into the international break on the back of two defeats in a week but there is still plenty to be optimistic about when they return to action.