The Magpies took the lead at St. James’ Park through Joelinton, but Jose Mourinho’s men hit back through two quick fire strikes from Harry Kane.
But Steve Bruce’s men dug in and in the end it was on-loan Arsenal man Willock who provided the decisive contribution, hammering home with five minutes remaining to earn United what was, in truth, a deserved point.
United had the better of the opening exchanges, with Joelinton testing Hugo Lloris, but there were flashes of the threat Spurs could pose: a Lucas Moura free kick which drifted just beyond the onrushing Joe Rodon, and a Kane shot which Martin Dúbravka palmed over the crossbar.
An even clearer double-chance came Newcastle’s way soon after, with Jonjo Shelvey’s beautifully-weighted cross picking out Dwight Gayle in the box. On just his third league start of the season, the frontman looked set to open the scoring, but Lloris did superbly to turn away his header at full stretch, before clutching the rebound just as it seemed as though it might slip under him and into the net.
Carlos Vinicius found the net soon after but was correctly ruled out for offside after Kane played him in, but when the first goal came, it felt like a deserved one for the Magpies. Davinson Sanchez’s poor clearance and Matt Ritchie’s tenacity gave Sean Longstaff a chance to pick a pass, and he did it to perfection; the United midfielder, restored to the starting line-up, put it on a plate for Joelinton, and his finish was a simple one.
But just 26 seconds after play restarted, the visitors drew level, and this time it was largely down to the hosts’ defending. Giovani Lo Celso threaded a pass through for Kane but Emil Krafth couldn’t deal with it, presenting the England forward with a chance he couldn’t miss from just a few yards out.
It was a blow for Bruce’s men and just a few minutes later, they fell behind. It was Kane again, this time after a terrific pass from Tanguy Ndombele which picked him out as he burst in from the right side of the box. His strike was low and firm, leaving Dúbravka with little chance.
The second half proved to be a slightly less open affair. The rhythm of the game remained, with both sides seeing plenty of the ball, but chances were at little more of a premium. Longstaff blasted a volley over the bar after one threatening United move, while Gayle almost created a tap-in for Joelinton after finding some space in the Spurs box at a corner.
The final 25 minutes produced a flurry of opportunities, though, with Japhet Tanganga seeing his bullet header cleared off the line by Miguel Almirón and Joelinton shooting wide of the target after Jacob Murphy cross found him in space.
Allan Saint-Maximin, who had been missing through injury since February’s draw with Wolves, was introduced from the bench for the final 20 minutes as Newcastle sought a leveller.
And with five minutes remaining, they got it - just after Kane had almost snatched a hat-trick at the other end with a low shot that struck the upright.
Saint-Maximin played his part in the build-up before Ritchie’s cross was knocked back by Joelinton and, though Almirón couldn’t quite connect, substitute Willock arrived at the perfect time, thumping an equaliser in off the bar to earn Bruce’s side a point.
