A reminder that Louise Taylor’s report has dropped. Here it is. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night!
Now it’s the turn of Liam Cooper to have a chat with Sky. “We created a lot of chances ... our strikers will be disappointed ... but we know how hard it is in this league to win a game of football ... we were unfortunate not to win ... we’re learning on the job in this league, and we’re desperate for that win, we really need it ... we’re gutted not to win the game, to be honest ... we know what’s made us successful and what we need to do to be our best ... if we keep improving the wins will come.”
Louise Taylor’s verdict is in. You know what to do ... clickity click.
Newcastle scorer Allan Saint-Maximin talks to Sky, and makes a point of backing his under-fire manager. “I score but we draw, so we are really disappointed tonight ... we have to have the mentality to win ... it’s better to draw than lose, against a really good team, and we have a lot of chances but we draw so we are not happy ... we have to stay together to keep going for a win ... I really love Steve Bruce, because he gave me the chance to show my quality in the Premier League ... sometimes you have good times and bad times, but we stay together, win together and lose together ... I always try to do my best for him.”
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FULL TIME: Newcastle United 1-1 Leeds United
Firpo and Summerville cause a bit of bother down the left, but can’t get anything on target and it’s a draw. Both teams are still looking for their first win of the season; the wait goes on. A few boos directed maybe at Steve Bruce, certainly at Mike Ashley. A wildly entertaining game, though.
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90 min +3: Murphy turns on the jets and makes it down the left from box to box. Leeds shut the gate just in time.
90 min +2: Leeds knock it around to no great effect. There have now been 38 attempts on goal. Can anyone come up with a 39th?
90 min +1: Firpo is slightly fortunate not to see yellow again after hauling Fraser to the ground.
90 min: There will be four added minutes. Enough time for a dramatic winner? If there’s one coming, Joelinton won’t be scoring it; he’s replaced by Murphy.
89 min: Ayling is down. Then back up, so he can limp off. He’s replaced by Shackleton.
88 min: Meslier plucks the corner from the sky.
87 min: Roberts tries to barge his way through the middle. The door closes just in time. Meanwhile Ayling, who was down for some treatment a couple of minutes ago, continues to limp around and it’s down his flank that Newcastle win a corner.
85 min: A draw wouldn’t be the worst result for either team, though a first three-point haul of the season would be nice. You get the sense both sides are beginning to think about the positives of a much-needed win, and going for it, rather than considering the misery of another defeat. It could be a dramatic last few minutes.
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83 min: Saint-Maximin embarks on a supercharged run down the inside-right before gliding infield and thrashing a violent drive goalwards. It’s well gathered by Meslier.
82 min: Clark makes good down the left and forces a corner. Ritchie’s inswinger is half cleared. He gets another go, and finds the head of Lascelles, who flaps a weak header wide right, Meslier shepherding it out calmly.
81 min: Manquillo can’t continue and is replaced by Krafth.
80 min: The game restarts, and it’s not long before Firpo is booked for wrestling Willock to the ground.
78 min: Rodrigo spins on the edge of the Newcastle box but can’t get a shot away. Up the other end, things briefly threaten to open up for Joelinton, but the striker hesitates. Manquillo and Bamford then crash into each other and require some treatment, allowing everyone to take a welcome breather and knock back some water.
76 min: Phillips floats one down the inside-right channel for Bamford, who throws himself at the ball, either attempting the diving header or looking for a penalty. Either way, the nearby Ritchie isn’t impressed and there’s a brief but passionate exchange of views.
75 min: There have been 32 attempts at goal so far, 13 of them on target. Both team contributions pretty much equally split, give or take. It’s not clear how this is still 1-1.
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74 min: Up the other end, Willock does very well to keep the ball in play down the right, and cuts back for Saint-Maximin, who whistles a low shot through a crowded box and into the arms of Meslier.
73 min: The Rodrigo-Bamford combination works again, the former crossing from the left, the latter slamming wide as he meets the ball with a low drive.
72 min: Rodrigo slips Bamford into space on the edge of the Newcastle box. It’s a very decent opening, but Bamford doesn’t connect properly with a slightly panicked shot, and Darlow smothers.
70 min: Longstaff with another off-target blooter from distance. Then Joelinton latches onto a loose Ayling pass and drives into the Leeds box. He runs slap bang into Ayling, and wants a penalty, but he’s never getting one for that.
69 min: The first real lull of the evening, both teams perhaps considering their fate should they lose yet another game.
67 min: Leeds replace Raphinha with 19-year-old Dutch winger Crysencio Summerville.
66 min: More action involving Longstaff’s boot. This time a shot from the best part of 30 yards. It’s always sailing harmlessly wide right.
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64 min: Longstaff clocks Firpo on the lug with a ludicrously high boot. Not sure why that isn’t a booking, but there’s no yellow card.
63 min: Corner for Leeds on the right. Raphinha swings it in. Longstaff blooters a volley clear to loud cheers. Basic but effective.
62 min: Both teams make a change. Leeds replace James with his Wales team-mate Roberts, while Almiron makes way for Fraser.
60 min: Space for Klich on the edge of the D. He should roll towards Raphinha on the right, the Pele-Carlos Alberto dynamic, but opts to shoot instead. His dribbler rolls into the arms of Darlow.
59 min: Newcastle come again through Saint-Maximin, who bursts into the Leeds box on the left and sends a searing drive towards the bottom left. Meslier stays strong to turn around the post. Nothing comes of the corner. St James’ Park is bouncing.
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58 min: Ritchie chips over everyone. Goal kick.
57 min: Rodrigo goes in the book for a cynical tug on Saint-Maximin. Free kick 35 yards out. Everyone lines up on the edge of the Leeds box.
56 min: I can happily report that disorder is back. Both teams are all over the shop, as open as you like. This can’t end 1-1, surely. It just can’t.
54 min: Newcastle go straight up the other end and nearly score through Saint-Maximin, who can’t quite fashion a shot from the edge of the box.
53 min: Ah yes, welcome back chaos, old friend. First up, Darlow goes wandering and is nearly embarrassed by Raphinha. Lascelles tidies up. Then James crosses from the left. The ball skims off Lascelles’ head and nearly loops into the top right. Darlow claws away just in time.
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52 min: The second half has started at a slightly slower tempo, almost as though both teams have had some pragmatic common sense drummed into them during the break. A shame, if so. More chaos, please!
50 min: Raphinha crosses deep from the right. James is free on the left-hand corner of the six-yard box, Manquillo having gone walkabout. James meets the dropping ball but drags his volley harmlessly wide left.
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48 min: Space for Klich down the left ... but the flag goes, up, James having dithered over the defence-splitting pass.
47 min: Bamford prepares to bolt clear down the middle, with the ball at his feet. But the whistle goes, the ball having been deflected his way by referee Mike Dean.
46 min: No half-time changes, by the way.
Newcastle get the second half underway. They’re pretty lucky to be going into it on terms, because replays of the Willock challenge on James shown at half-time make it pretty clear a penalty should have been awarded, the Newcastle man sticking out a leg and sending his opponent crashing down. But here we are!
Half-time chill-out. Let’s take things down a notch before the wild ride begins again.
HALF TIME: Newcastle United 1-1 Leeds United
The whistle goes after 49 minutes that felt like 49 seconds. More, please!
45 min +4: ... and they really should score, first through Raphinha, who has time to take a touch eight yards out, only for a defender to block. The ball breaks to James, who shoots. Another block. Then Firpo is free six yards out, but he leans over and blazes high and wide! This is an absurd match. It’s so good.
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45 min +3: Saint-Maximin dribbles in from the left and momentarily threatens to recreate his goal! The space closes, though, and Leeds break upfield ...
45 min +2: Klich sweeps a cross in from the left. Easy for Darlow.
45 min +1: The first of three added minutes flies by, like the rest of this half.
45 min: There was a minor brouhaha in the box after that goal, and VAR takes a look, but turns out it’s a fuss over nothing.
GOAL! Newcastle United 1-1 Leeds United (Saint-Maximin 44)
What a finish this is! Joelinton strides down the left and cuts back for Saint-Maximin, on the edge of the box. Saint-Maximin shifts the ball to the right, again, and again, and again. It looks as though he’s overelaborated and the chance is gone, but suddenly he spins and whips a low drive across Meslier and into the bottom-left corner! That’s a wonderful solo goal.
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43 min: Saint-Maximin spins Cooper with ease down the right but can’t find Joelinton in the centre. Then a bit of space for Longstaff, just inside the D, but he can only send a weak first-time sidefoot into the arms of Meslier.
42 min: Leeds stroke the ball around the back awhile. A confident period of sterile possession.
40 min: Leeds have already had ten attempts at goal, five of them on target. On the touchline, Steve Bruce is empurpled with rage as he tries to gee his players into action. A portrait of a manager under severe pressure.
38 min: Almiron trips over his own feet. The referee waves play on. Almiron wants a foul, and is booked not for diving, but for arguing the toss too much.
37 min: James spins balletically on the left-hand edge of the Newcastle six-yard box and fires across the face of goal. Ritchie has to hack out for a corner with Bamford and Raphinha lurking.
36 min: Newcastle’s corner nearly leads to a goal ... for Leeds, who break at pace up the other end, Rodrigo bursting into a box that’s light on Newcastle defenders. He should at least work Darlow, he should probably score, but he takes a heavy touch and has to settle for a corner. Nothing comes from that.
35 min: So having said that, Newcastle come this close to levelling. Ritchie drops a shoulder, coming in from the left, and pearls a low drive off the base of the left-hand post! Meslier might have got a fingernail on that. So unlucky. Leeds hack out for a corner.
34 min: ... Rodrigo finds Raphinha out on the right with a sweeping pass. Raphinha tees up Klich, whose low drive is nearly spilled by Darlow. Leeds are threatening a second.
33 min: Phillips emphasises the point with a panicked tackle on Saint-Maximin. A free kick and a chance to load the box. Newcastle waste the opportunity and Leeds sweep up the other end, where ...
31 min: If Newcastle get back into this, Saint-Maximin will surely be involved one way or another. He burns his way past Cooper down the right, entering the box and pulling back for Willock, who blazes wildly over from distance. Saint-Maximin is a joy to watch, and the stadium crackles accordingly whenever he gets on the ball.
29 min: Rodrigo romps down the inside-right channel, stops in the box, looks up, and pulls back for Phillips, who powers a shot towards the top right. The net ripples, but only after the ball whips around the wrong side of the post. Something for Newcastle fans to cheer at last, even if it’s only to mock the Leeds fans who thought that was in.
27 min: There is no way this game will end 0-1.
25 min: ... and now Leeds nearly go two up. James lays the ball off to Rodrigo, who sends a forensic curler inches wide of the left-hand post, Darlow out of the game. Also, replays of Willock’s challenge on James suggest a penalty wouldn’t have been the most outrageous decision.
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24 min: Newcastle should be level. The ever-entertaining Saint-Maximin breezes past Firpo down the right and fires infield for Almiron, who swishes and misses from six yards. No worries, Joelinton is free six yards out! He slams a shot towards the bottom left, but Meslier sticks out a boot to block sensationally.
23 min: Action in both boxes, as Saint-Maximin can’t sort his feet out while in space, while James is barged over in the Newcastle box, a hard but fair challenge by Willock. This is great fun.
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22 min: Raphinha is once again afforded a ludicrous amount of space down the right. Newcastle are lucky that he blooters his cross miles over the heads of Bamford and Rodrigo.
20 min: An equaliser would quell it, though, and it nearly comes when Saint-Maximin and Ritchie combine again down the left, the latter’s cross nearly swept into the bottom-right corner by Almiron. Better from Newcastle, who were rocking down the other end of the pitch.
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19 min: Raphinha barges his way past Ritchie, who is on a yellow card and can’t do anything rash. He does well to poke out for a corner, just as Raphinha shapes to shoot. From the set piece, Bamford has a half-chance with a header six yards out, then after some pinball, the ball breaks right for Raphinha, whose low drive is only just stopped by Darlow. The crowd with more boos. That mutiny might not be long in coming.
17 min: Raphinha yanks Joelinton back by the shorts. The fabric stretches to a cartoonish length. Comic-book stuff. For some reason, there’s no yellow card. The home fans are not happy.
15 min: The Toon Army aren’t quite mutinous yet, but that’s curdled the night air somewhat. Boos give way to a frustrated simmer, while the Leeds fans up in the heavens can be heard belting out their songbook. No immediate response by Newcastle, who have only had 30 percent of possession so far.
GOAL! Newcastle United 0-1 Leeds United (Raphinha 13)
That party Friday night atmosphere has just turned sour. Boos ring out as Raphinha crosses from a deep position on the right. Rodrigo shapes to meet it, but opens his legs and throws a dummy instead, the ball sailing across the thrown Darlow and into the bottom left. What a goal!
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12 min: Rodrigo bursts down the inside-left channel, chasing Firpo’s pass. He cuts back, looking for Bamford. Raphinha meets the ball instead, poking harmlessly forward into the arms of Darlow. “With Marcelo Bielsa patrolling the visitors’ technical area and Leeds desperate for three points I reckon that any Local Hero might be outdone by El Loco Hero.” MBM regular Peter Oh there, ladies and gentlemen, doing what Peter Oh does.
10 min: A long Leeds pass down the middle. Rodrigo chests down just inside the box. Hayden barges into the back of him, legally in the referee’s eyes. Rodrigo gesticulates but doesn’t put too much into the act of feeling hard done by.
8 min: There’s a good Friday night atmosphere. Everyone enjoying themselves ... until things get a big sour when Ritchie goes in the book for hauling back Raphinha. So much for the referee giving everyone a little time to settle down before flashing the cards. The crowd are not happy.
6 min: Saint-Maximin sends the overlapping Ritchie clear down the left. Ritchie reaches the byline and sends a low cross into the six-yard box. Meslier smothers easily enough.
5 min: Almiron turns on the jets down the right, only to be clipped from behind by Klich. No booking, though you suspect there would have been with more minutes on the clock.
4 min: Willock’s loose touch in midfield nearly allows the alert Phillips to steal away with the ball and barrel towards the Newcastle box. He’s fortunate that Phillips is working at such high speed that he can’t keep control. Toon hearts in mouths for a split second.
3 min: Leeds string a few passes together. Raphinha scoops down the right for Klich, who tees up Bamford to chest down on the edge of the box and hoick harmlessly over.
2 min: A slow start, so it’s a chance to point out that Leeds’ purple kit is less Fiorentina, more Rangers away during the mid 90s. It’s nice, an aesthetic treat. No doubt the purists hate it.
Leeds kick off ... but only after everyone takes the knee. Warm applause greets the gesture. There’s no room for racism.
The teams are out! Newcastle wear their famous black and white stripes, while Leeds sport third-choice purple. A quick blast of the theme from one of the greatest movies of all time, and we’ll be away.
England’s player of the year Kalvin Phillips talks to Sky. “It’s weird to be honest, I didn’t expect to win it, but I’m very grateful. It all goes down to hard work and the team around me. We’ve not won a game yet and want to get points on the board. Newcastle are in the same situation so it’ll be a good game tonight.”
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Here’s what happened in this fixture last season ...
... and what went on at Elland Road won’t fill Toon fans with too much confidence either. While wishing Jack Harrison a speedy recovery, Newcastle will be happy to see a Leeds team-sheet without his name anywhere near it.
Some pre-match reading ... courtesy of Louise Taylor.
Steve Bruce talks to Sky Sports. “The one thing you need as a football manager is results ... the frustration is obviously evident, but a result or two puts that to sleep for a while. Everyone wants to get off to a good start. If you don’t, you know what’s coming. So it’s a big game for both of us. We’ve been close in a couple of our four games. I was delighted with the way we played for an hour at Old Trafford last week for an hour, didn’t quite happen, but we’ve got to repeat that today and hopefully we’ll get a result.”
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Newcastle make one change from the team defeated 4-1 at Manchester United. Karl Darlow returns after missing the start of the season due to Covid-19, replacing Freddie Woodman in between the sticks.
Dan James makes his full debut for Leeds. He’s one of two changes from the 3-0 home loss to Liverpool. He replaces Jack Harrison, who has contracted Covid-19, while Mateusz Klich comes in for Diego Llorente. Pascal Struijk is suspended.
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The teams
Newcastle United: Darlow, Manquillo, Clark, Lascelles, Hayden, Ritchie, Saint-Maximin, Longstaff, Willock, Almiron, Joelinton.
Subs: Schar, Lewis, Hendrick, Krafth, Fernandez, Fraser, Murphy, Gillespie, Gayle.
Leeds United: Meslier, Dallas, Ayling, Cooper, Firpo, Phillips, Raphinha, Klich, Rodrigo, James, Bamford.
Subs: Roberts, Klaesson, Cresswell, Summerville, Greenwood, McCarron, Shackleton, McKinstry, Kenneh.
Referee: Mike Dean (Wirral).
Preamble
Two giants of English football, right here. Both are in a spot of bother. Neither have won in the Premier League yet this season, but we’re only four games in, so let’s not get carried away. Still, three points would be useful, with Leeds in 17th place and Newcastle one off the bottom. Kick off is at 8pm BST. It’s on!
