EPL:-: Newcastle 0 vs 0 Stoke| Match Report

Stoke City were indebted to Jack Butland for their battling
0-0 Premier League draw with Newcastle United at St
James' Park on Saturday.

The England international goalkeeper pulled off a string of
superb saves to keep the scores level while at the other end
Jonathan Walters missed the best chance of the game,
failing to turn in a fine Charlie Adam cross.

Newcastle are now unbeaten in five at home against Stoke,
but are without a win in their last four Premier League
clashes with the Potters.

Mark Hughes welcomed back his captain Ryan Shawcross,
who made his first Premier League appearance of the
season after a persistent back problem.

Aleksandar Mitrovic came closest for the home side when he
hit the post with a glancing header but the result does little
for Steve McClaren's men, who remain rooted in the bottom
three.

Newcastle were looking for a reaction to last weekend's 3-0
derby defeat to Sunderland and they started well with Ayoze
Perez and Mitrovic linking up, but the Serb's shot was
saved.

Stoke had a shout for a penalty in the fifth minute when Paul
Dummett clipped Bojan Krkic's heels, but referee Roger East
was not interested and replays showed the contact to have
taken place outside the box.

The visitors were seeking a third straight away Premier
League win and should have taken the lead after 15
minutes. Adam's superb cross evaded Chancel Mbemba,
but Walters was unable to get a telling touch when it looked
easier to score.

Mitrovic was at the heart of Newcastle's best play and
Butland was lucky to see the striker's header from Moussa
Sissoko's cross bounce back off the post.

Perez went close two minutes into the second half but his
shot from 20 yards curled just wide.

Georginio Wijnaldum - scorer of four goals for Newcastle in
their last home game against Norwich City - then brought a
smart save out of Butland with a free-kick.

Stoke were threatening on the break and Rob Elliot was soon
called into action for the first time, saving superbly from a
Walters header after a fine Marko Arnautovic cross. Walters
thumped the rebound wildly over.

Butland, the hero in Stoke's League Cup penalty-shootout
win against Chelsea in midweek, was keeping his team in
the game and he made an outstanding save to deny Sissoko
after the France midfielder had been played in by Wijnaldum.
From the resulting corner, Mbemba thudded a header
narrowly wide.

In the 58th minute Butland was called upon once again,
parrying a 20-yard drive from Perez around the post as
Newcastle started to dominate.

Butland was by far the game's outstanding player and he
showed razor sharp reflexes to tip over a drive by Sissoko
with seven minutes to go, before palming over substitute
Jamaal Lascelles' header as both sides had to settle for a
point.