Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany said Tuesday's 1-1 draw was "not a bad result" as he acknowledged that Newcastle "are playing for their lives."
Sergio Aguero scored his 100th Premier League from an offside position to give City the lead, but Vurnon Anita's fine individual effort drew Newcastle level, and the relegation-threatened hosts even had chances to win the game in the late stages.
Man City are fighting off Arsenal and Manchester United for third place, but Kompany said the single point at St. James' Park was acceptable.
"It was a tough game, they are playing for their lives," Kompany said, according to the BBC. "You wouldn't call it a bad draw. We need to win as many games as we can but I have seen a good Newcastle team tonight. It was a hostile environment and not a bad result.
"The hardest part of coming back from injury is getting back to the level of the Premier League. The more games you play the better you will feel. Overall it was a positive day."
Kompany also hailed the work of Aguero, who became the second-fastest to record a century of goals in the Premier League in just 147 appearances.
"Sergio Aguero has been a major player for us and there are not enough words to describe how important he is," Kompany said.
"We just hope he can carry on his career like this, it's hard to come across a player who can have such an impact on games like he does."
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini also said he was satisfied with the result, coming just three days after a 3-0 win at Chelsea.
"I am happy. We started winning the game but we could not have the control after that. We knew that it was very tough.
"The officials have nothing to do with the result. I didn't see the team with the energy from Saturday, but we play after three days at the end of the season and it is not easy for the team to recover."
Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez remained hopeful that the point could help his side stay in the Premier League, while he also thanked the home fans for providing a boost.
"The fans appreciate the effort of the players. Everybody is trying to do everything to stay up," Benitez said.
"Hopefully yes [we have momentum] but we cannot have influence on other teams' games. We have to keep believing and hopefully win the next game.
"I said when I came that it is an intimidating place for other teams. That is what we are looking for and that is what we have."