The Blues trailed 2-0 at the interval and it could even have been worse than that had Nick Woltemade completed his hat-trick shortly before the break.

However, we came out fighting in the second half and a stunning James set-piece was followed by a clever Joao Pedro goal to earn us a 2-2 draw.

James, who put in yet another commanding central midfield performance, was pleased to play his part during a thriller at St James’ Park.

‘I’ve been taking free-kicks my whole life, and to execute one when we needed to pull something out the bag was a great feeling,’ he said.

‘One goal changes the game. We knew if we got one, the second one for sure was there.

‘They got the better of us in every department in the first half. They won too many second balls that we needed to tighten up on. In the second half we had to review and change a few things, and then the game turned quickly.’

James felt our comeback pointed to the spirit in the dressing room as well as our improving ability to handle the intensity of hostile stadiums. It is part of the progress he believes the Blues have made in 2025.

‘Last year we came here and lost. This time we have come from 2-0 down in a difficult game and we are happy to take a point considering the first half.

‘It’s a difficult place to come. Many teams come here and the atmosphere gets the better of them. We couldn’t win but it’s important when you can’t win, not to lose.’