Wolves 0-0 Newcastle: Rob Edwards' side extend unbeaten run to four games

Newcastle missed the chance to climb into the Premier League's top five after being held to a goalless draw at battling Wolves.

The Champions League-chasing Magpies were looking for a fourth straight league win for the first time since April, but lacked inspiration as striker Nick Woltemade again drew a blank.

The £69m Germany forward, who scored on his Newcastle debut against Wolves in September, now has just three goals in his past 19 games and was replaced by Yoane Wissa in the second half.

Eddie Howe's side would have gone fifth with a win by two clear goals, but did not manage a shot on target until the 85th minute - although they did move up a place to eighth with this point.

"I don't think we have the financial ability to do that," said Howe, when asked if new signings this month could offer his forwards more help.

"I don't think our attacking output was good enough. There have been similar away games, if people want to accuse us of that, that is totally fair, but we have to find a way to score more goals on the road.

"I was happy with the attitude, endeavour and the effort but the overall quality was missing. In games like that you are looking for an individual moment of brilliance.

"Football is such a strange game, you go back a couple of weeks and we score four against Leeds and looked free scoring and could create in any moment [but] today was a very different game.

"It wasn't for the want of trying. There were some good moments. Some big moments we didn't take."

Rock-bottom Wolves are 14 points from safety and have other priorities, but have rediscovered their drive and - more importantly - their organisation and are unbeaten in five games in all competitions.

While it will almost certainly be too late to save them after failing to win any of their opening 19 games, there is at least growing optimism for the future under boss Rob Edwards.

Much of that comes from teenage breakthrough star Mateus Mane, who hooked a shot at Nick Pope, while Jose Sa saved late efforts from Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton.

Edwards said: "I do think we look more resilient, there's more belief there. That's hard to turn around from the position we were, there were a few who were feeling it, feeling the pressure and were maybe a bit vulnerable.

"We're certainly trending in the right direction. It's another step forward, a clean sheet against another top team. We are looking solid.

"It was a really solid, spirited performance. I would have loved us to have carried a little more threat but it was difficult to catch them on the counter.

"We didn't really get the chance to get control of the ball as much as we wanted but overall I'm really pleased."

Unity is back at Molineux.

It says a lot that Edwards took supporters' applause during his post-match lap of the ground after a 0-0 draw which leaves Wolves 14 points from safety.

It has taken time to come - and the deep fractures between the ownership and the fanbase remain - but Edwards has slowly restored some pride and togetherness.

The fans were fully behind the team on Sunday and Wolves are now unbeaten in five games in all competitions.

That feels like a milestone given their club record 12-match losing streak earlier this season - with Edwards losing his first seven fixtures after his November move from Middlesbrough.

Wolves battled to a deserved point against the Magpies and are proving to be more organised, more resilient and braver under Edwards.

The return of assistant head coach Rui Pedro Silva's to Wolves' staff in December has perhaps been overlooked in some quarters.

But the Portuguese, who worked with Nuno Espirito Santo at Wolves, should be credited with helping this side rediscover their steel.

It has come too late - and you would have to be creative to convince anyone Wolves can survive - but just being able to talk in those terms means they are making progress under Edwards.

They were going down without a fight before, but Wolves are finally starting to bare their teeth.

Woltemade's goal struggles will be a growing concern for Howe - and the striker's barren spell could dent Newcastle's Champions League hopes.

Just three goals in his past 19 games is not a total Woltemade or his manager would have expected after a goalscoring debut against Wolves in September.

The German scored five times in his first eight matches after a club record move from Stuttgart in an impressive start to life in the north east.

But that confidence has ebbed away and the 23-year-old was replaced by Wissa midway through the second half after another fruitless outing.

Woltemade was not given a great deal of service, but what he did have to work with he wasted - including a glancing first-half header which he may have done better with.

He still has seven goals in 19 league appearances, but if he fails to re-find his shooting boots it will harm the Magpies' top-four chances.

Newcastle had scored seven goals in their past three league matches - all wins - before coming to Molineux, but with just one by a striker (Wissa's goal against Burnley).

The Magpies did not have a shot on target while Woltemade was on the pitch on Sunday - albeit a statistic he is not entirely responsible for - and will view a stalemate against the league's bottom side as a wasted opportunity.

However, Wolves have rediscovered their fight and a point in a forgettable match was a fair result, even if Newcastle will have reasons to be deflated.

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