Winning = good, Salah getting injured = bad
Louis Taylor’s view from Newcastle ...
Jurgen Klopp: “Heart,” he says, when asked what it was won that game for Liverpool, in an interview with Sky Sports. “What can I say? We can talk about the game, we can talk about football but the way Newcastle played it was just difficult to deal with generally. It was really difficult to defend all these situations.
“I really thought we had so many fantastic moments of football, to calm it down, to pass it around. To make them run. Today was just heart- what the boys put in here was unbelievable. The decisive goal was Shaqiri and Divock Origi, so what can I say? They were physically stronger than us today so we had to fight. I’m so proud. I’m really happy but Newcastle, credit to them for trying to win their last home game.”
Match report: Newcastle United 2-3 Liverpool
Andy Hunter was at St James’ Park for the Guardian to see Liverpool pegged back twice by Newcastle before grabbing a slightly fortuitous late winner. Here’s his hot take on a real white-knuckle ride on Tyneside.
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Footnote III Replays of the touchline tussle between Fabinho and Matt Ritchie that led to the free-kick from which Liverpool scored their winner suggest that it was a very soft one. Ritchie didn’t appear to foul Fabinho, who went to ground very easily, prompting the linesman, who was only a couple of yards away, to raise his flag. What did he see, wonders Sky panel of pundits.
Trent Alexander Arnold: “I suppose so,” he says when asked if he was pleased Newcaslte scored because it meant he didn’t get sent off. “It was one of those where the ball’s come at me quite quickly. It’s being instinctive, my arm hasn’t really flown out and tried to attack the ball, it’s stayed near my side,” he adds, with a big grin on his face that suggests he doesn’t believe a word of it. “But if you look back on the lead-up to the second goal where I get tripped up but that didn’t get seen. It’s probably worked out evens, at the end of the day.”
Divock Origi: “It’s a lot of emotion, but we have to control it,” he tells Sky Sports. “It’s very exciting but we want to finish it off in style. We want to do everything to win everything.”
Trent Alexander-Arnold: “It was tough for us,” he says in an interview with Sky Sports. “We always knew it was going to be a tough place to come. We wanted to show we had the mentality to bounce back after the defeat during the week. We do have a strong mentality because we have score a lot of late winners and equalisers.”
Footnote II: I can confirm that Origi did get a touch on that free-kick crossed in from the right. The ball skimmed off his flailing dreadlocks before bouncing off the head of Lascelles and beat Martin Dubravka.
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Footnote: Some good news for Jamaal Lascelles - Liverpool’s winner has been credited to Divock Origi, presumably because the ball skimmed off his head and was on target before going into the net off the bonce of Lascelles. I wasn’t convinced Origi got a touch on it at all, to be honest.
So, Liverpool have done it. They looked understandably tired, they were far from their best but they’ve got away with it tonight thanks to a great show of character and some occasionally slapstick Newcastle defending. They were pegged back twice by a home side who had little to play for and deserve tremendous credit for trying so hard.
Virgil van Dijk opened the scoring for the visitors, only for Christian Atsu to restore parity seven minutes later. Less than 10 minutes after that, Mo Salah gave Liverpool the lead again, only for Salomon Rondon to equalise 10 minutes into the second half. After losing Mo Salah to injury and with just four minutes left of normal time, Jamaal Lascelles headed into his own net under pressure from Divock Origi to keep Liverpool’s title hopes alive.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 37 | 65 | 94 |
| 2 | Man City | 36 | 68 | 92 |
| 3 | Tottenham Hotspur | 37 | 28 | 70 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 36 | 21 | 68 |
| 5 | Arsenal | 36 | 20 | 66 |
Full time: Newcastle 2-3 Liverpool
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeep! It’s all over at St James’ Park, where Liverpool have won a thrilling encounter by the odd game of five. They’ve shown a huge amount of character and go two points clear of Manchester City, who have a game in hand and play Leicester City on Monday.
90+8 min: The ball’s in the Newcastle half, where Liverpool would like it to stay.
90+7 min: The ball’s swung into the mixer by Ritchie, but Liverpool half-clear. The ball comes in again, but Alisson gets a fist to it and sends it away from the danger area.
90+6 min: Newcastle win a throw-in on halfway, followed by a corner. Up come the big men!
90+5 min: Three minutes, Jurgen. Three minutes!
90+4 min: On the touchline, Jurgen Klopp consults one of his coaching staff, enquiring how much time is left. Four minutes, Jurgen! Four minutes!
90+2 min: We’re in the second of eight recommended minutes of added time. James Milner is booked for a cynical but vital challenge on Atsu. Newcastle have a free-kick from around about the same distance out from goal Leo Messi found himself on Wednesday night. Salomon Rondon is a good player, but he’s no Leo Messi - he smacks the ball into the defensive wall.
90 min: Newcastle substitution: Yoshinori Muto on, Fabian Schar off. Rafa Benitez switches to a back four and brings on another attacker as he attempts to find another equaliser.
88 min: Crikey! It’s worth adding that the free-kick from which Liverpool scored their third goal was given away by Matt Ritchie for a foul on Fabinho. Hats off to Xherdan Shaqiri, whose whipped delivery into the penalty area was straight out of the top drawer.
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GOAL! Newcastle 2-3 Liverpool (Lascelles 86og)
Liverpool are back in front!!! The ball is swung in from the right flank and Origi leaps with Lascelles. The ball appears to skim off the Liverpool substitute’s head and fizz into the back of the net, but replays suggest it was Lascelles who got the final touch.
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86 min: Ritchie concedes a free-kick, giving Liverpool a free-kick wide on the right, in line with the edge of the penalty area. And Liverpool score!!!
84 min: A good defensive header from Dummett, who puts the ball over the bar for a corner after intercepting a decent cross from Origi on the left flank. Nothing comes of the set-piece.
82 min: Liverpool are playing with Mane up front, Sturridge behind him and Shaqiri and Origi as their wide men. Now they bring on James Milner, who replaces Dejan Lovren. Fabinho moves back to play in the heart of Liverpool’s defence.
82 min: More evidence of nerves from Liverpool, as Trent Alexander-Arnold sends the ball sailing out of play for a throw-in.
80 min: Isaac Hayden leaps to contest a cross into the Liverpool penalty area from the left flank. Alisson beats him to it and punches clear. There are 10 minutes remaining, but there’ll be plenty of added time once we hit the 90-minute mark.
78 min: Fabinho and Jordan Henderson get their wires crossed and contrive to send the ball out of play for a Newcastle throw-in on the halfway line. All those interruptions for medical intervention appear to have disrupted Liverpool’s rhythm.
77 min: They are dropping like flies! Now Ayoze Perez goes to ground holding his head after an accidental clash of heads with Virgil van Dijk. He’s quickly back on his feet.
76 min: There’s another break, as Ki receives medical attention after being accidentally cuffed by Sturridge. He’s passed fit to continue.
74 min: Atsu tries to tee up Rondon just inside the Liverpool penalty area, but his slightly imprecise pass means the striker has to adjust his feet before trying to unleash a shot. The brief moment of hesitation enables Liverpool’s defenders to get in position to block his shot, which takes a deflection and loops into the arms of Alisson.
74 min: Salah is carried down the tunnel and play resumes.
71 min: Five different medical staff are hunkered around Salah, who continues to get treatment. He’s flat on his back with his hands over his face and is lifted into the stretcher. I’m happy to report he’s conscious. He’s placed on the stretcher and receives a warm round of applause from both sets of fans as he’s carried off the pitch. Divock Origi replaces him.
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69 min: The medics call for a stretcher, which duly arrives. Salah is still lying prone on the floor receiving treatment after his collision with Newcastle’s goalkeeper.
68 min: Mo Salah lies on the floor looking a bit the worse for wear after a collision with Martin Dubravka as both players went for the ball. The goalkeeper caught him on the head with his hip and the Egyptian doesn’t look great as he receives medical attention.
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67 min: Manquillo sends a great cross into the Liverpool penalty area from the right flank. It drops promisingly for Rondon and Atsu, who leave it for each other, allowing Liverpool to clear.
66 min: Liverpool substitution: Gini Wijnaldum off, Xherdan Shaqiri on. The Dutchman gets booed by the fans of his former club, who obviously haven’t forgotten he left them the last time they were relegated.
64 min: Liverpool have 25 minutes left to find a winner, as a draw is no use to them tonight. If they leave Newcastle with just one point, Manchester City would, to all intents and purposes, win the title with a win against Leicester City on Monday night.
64 min: Robertson cuts the ball across the Newcastle penalty area. Henderson shapes to sweep it home, but the delivery is a little to far behind him and he misses it completely.
61 min: Neat footwork from Ayoze Perez, who takes on and almost beats three Liverpool defenders as he attempts to make room for a shot on goal from a seemingly impossible position near one goal-post. He’s eventually outnumbered, but can’t fire off a decent shot from a tight angle.
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60 min: That goal was no more than Salomon Rondon deserved, it should be noted. He’s been a constant menace tonight, bullying Dejan Lovren in particular while causing Liverpool’s defenders no end of problems. That was his 10th goal of the season and it has St James’ Park rocking.
59 min: Paul Dummett shepherds the ball out of play for a Newcastle goal-kick under pressure from Mo Salah.
57 min: Robertson sends a cross into the Newcastle penalty area, but it doesn’t beat the first defender and is cleared.
55 min: Newcastle had a corner, which Ritchie swung into the penalty area. The ball was cleared to the edge of the penalty area, then ricocheted to the feet of Rondon, who lashed home into the bottom right-hand corner with his left foot.
GOAL! Newcastle 2-2 Liverpool (Rondon 54)
Rondon equalises! It’s all square at St James’ Par as Liverpool fail to defend a corner properly.
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52 min: Liverpool go close again, but Matt Ritchie saves Newcastle’s bacon as Henderson looked to convert another cross from Andy Robertson.
50 min: Daniel Sturridge misses a glorious opportunity, shanking the ball high and wide of the Newcastle goal from 12 yards out after being picked out by Wijnaldum. That’s an awful shot - the goal was at his mercy.
49 min: Fabian Schar curls a dangerous looking cross into the Liverpool penalty area, aiming for Rondon. His delivery is cleared, but not convincingly. The ball breaks to Rondon again, who shoots low and hard toward goal. Alisson saves reasonably comfortably.
47 min: He is wrong, it should be repeated. Great defending from Jamaal Lascelles, who gets his head to a cross from Andy Robertson that was arrowing towards Daniel Sturridge at the far post. A corner for Liverpool, from which nothing comes.
Second half: Newcastle 1-2 Liverpool
46 min: Play resumes, with Liverpool getting the ball rolling. They’ve benefitted from a couple of moments of Newcastle largesse in the first half, but made life a little difficult for themselves by conceding a sloppy goal. It is imperative they win tonight, to keep the pressure on Manchester City, who play Leicester City on Monday. There are no changes in personnel on either side after the break. On his way back out on to the pitch, Salomon Rondon had a great laugh with fourth official Kevin Friend, gesturing with his arm. I think he thinks Trent Alexander-Arnold should have been sent off.
Half-time: Newcastle 1-2 Liverpool
A very entertaining half comes to a close, with Liverpool leading by the odd goal of three scored. Virgil van Dijk put them ahead having been left completely unmarked at a corner and his side looked to be cruising. Seven minutes later, Christian Atsu levelled for Newcastle and Liverpool looked a little rattled,
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45+2 min: Virgil van Dijk blocks Ayoze Perez from reaching the ball on the edge of the Liverpool penalty area, but Newcastle calls for a free-kick are ignored. In the ensuing hoop-la, Fabian Scahr is booked for shoving somebody or other.
45+1 min: Andy Robertson sends a cross into the Newcastle penalty area, aiming for Mo Salah. Paul Dummett clears, a mite unconvincingly but he gets the job done nonetheless.
44 min: A promising looking Newcastle attack breaks down when Fabinho robs the ball from Manquillo and advances up the pitch with no little authority.
41 min: Salomon Rondon is played in between the two Liverpool centre-backs with a nice clipped pass from Perez, but shoots feebly and straight at Alisson after getting the ball caught under his feet.
38 min: Fabian Schar is penalised for a foul on Sadio Mane halfway inside the Liverpool half. Mo Salah curls the free-kick into the Newcastle penalty area, aiming for Big Virgil, but Martin Dubravka is quick off his line to claim confidently.
36 min: Matt Ritchie tries to play Rondon in behind the Liverpool defence from deep after Jordan Henderson had given the ball away. The Venezuelen looks to be away but is flagged for offside after Dejan Lovren had stepped up.
34 min: Liverpool spurn a half-chance as Sadio Mane is denied by Martin Dubravka dashing off his line to save in a one-on-one.
32 min: According to my colleague and compatriot Miguel Delaney, referees can’t give a red card after playing an advantage, as Marriner did for the Newcastle goal, unless it is for violent conduct. Assuming he is correct, young Mr Alexander-Arnold has every right to be gadding about on the pitch.
29 min: Those pub debates will have cranked up a notch in intensity, now that a player who perhaps shouldn’t be on the pitch has helped Liverpool go back in front with a sublime cross from the right flank. That goal, which Salah scored with a good finish, puts Salah two ahead of Sadio Mane in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot. He was completely unmarked in the penalty area, much like Van Dijk was for Liverpool’s first. Rafael Benitez will be furious with his defenders.
GOAL! Newcastle 1-2 Liverpool (Salah 28)
Liverpool retake the lead. Trent Alexander-Arnold turns provider again, pinging a wonderful cross from the right touchline into the penalty area, where Mo Salah volleys home with his right foot.
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26 min: Liverpool are under serious pressure here. Ayoze Perez gets the better of Virgil van Dijk, receiving a pass from Atsu and unleashing an early shot that thumps against the upright from a tight-ish angle.
24 min: Liverpool might have dodged a bit of a bullet there, because if Atsu hadn’t scored, referee Andre Marriner would have had little choice but to award Newcastle a penalty and issue Trent Alexander-Arnold with a red card for deliberate hand-ball. Obviously, they might have missed the penalty but Liverpool would have been a man down for 70 minutes. Should Marriner have sent him off anyway? That’s a matter that is no doubt being debated in bars around the country as I type.
21 min: Chaos in the Liverpool penalty area, as Manquillo sends in a cross from the right. Lovren’s clearance is dreadful and the ball is pinged across the penalty area from Ritchie to Rondon, who attempts to stab home from close range. Trent Alexander-Arnold stops the ball on the line with his hand and there are frantic appeals from Rondon for a penalty. Appeals that are halted abruptly when the ball drops for Christian Atsu, who rifles home.
GOAL! Newcastle 1-1 Liverpool (Atsu 20)
Crikey! Christian Atsu equalises for Newcastle.
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16 min: Despite starting brightly, Newcastle are now very much second best in this game and not just on the scoreboard. Liverpool are bossing proceedings at the moment.
14 min: Liverpool settle any jitters with an early goal. They won a corner, which was swung in from the left. With a couple of his team-mates acting as blockers, Virgil van Dijk found himself completely unmarked on the edge of the six-yard box and nods past Martin Dubravka. It was Jamaal Lascelles who got caught out there, having been drawn into tracking a Sadio Mane run and slipping when he should have been marking the goalscorer.
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GOAL! Newcastle 0-1 Liverpool (Van Dijk 13)
Liverpool lead! Virgil van Dijk heads home from six yards out at a corner.
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11 min: Fabian Schar does well to dispossess Mane in the Newcastle penalty area, only to make a dog’s breakfast of his attempted clearance. He passes straight toRobertson, who finds Mo Salah on the right side of the penalty area. He shoots wide from a tight angle.
9 min: Sadio Mane goes to ground in the Newcastle penalty area holding his face after finding himself on the wrong end of a high boot from Javi Manquilo. Should it have been a penalty? I don’t really know - Manquilo got the ball, but the boot was high. On Sky’s commentary, Jamie Carragher suggests it would have been a free-kick anywhere else on the pitch.
8 min: Gini Wijnaldum plays the ball wide to Andy Robertson in the inside left channel. He makes ground into the Newcastle penalty area, but runs down a blind alley and is dispossessed.
7 min: Trent Alexander-Arnold tries to pick out Mo Salah with a raking delivery from deep, but it’s cleared by the head of a Newcastle defender. Good vision from the young full-back, there. The execution wasn’t too bad either.
6 min: Liverpool enjoy their first decent period of sustained possession, pinging the ball around midfield, probing for an opening.
4 min: Under a wee bit of pressure, Dejan Lovren shanks a clearance into the stand to sarcastic cheers and applause from those sitting in it and Newcastle win another throw-in. Then another.
3 min: Play is punctuated by a series of Newcastle throw-ins on the near touchline.
2 min: Christian Atsu whips a cross into the Liverpool penalty area from the left wing, but it’s too close to Alisson to cause any problems. The Liverpool goalkeeper gathers comfortably to get an early touch.
Newcastle v Liverpool is go!
1 min: Newcastle get the ball rolling in a raucous St James’ Park, their players wearing their customary home kit of black and white stripes, black shorts and white socks. Liverpool’s players wear red shirts, shorts and socks.
Not long now: Rafael Benitez has revealed he’ll be lining his side up in a 5-4-1 tonight, saying he has little choice but to do so “because they push you all the time”. The teams march out on to the St James’s Park pitch, where the Gallowgate end to their right is covered by a massive banner specially imported from Poland, with the names of the 2,000 fans who paid for it embroidered on it. “We are the Mags”, it reads. Kick-off is just a few minutes away.
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Bad news for Liverpool fans: When asked about Roberto Firmino’s chances of being fit in time for Liverpool’s return leg against Barcelona on Tuesday night, Jurgen Klopp has told Sky Sports “it’s not looking good”. He also said his medical staff there was no chance whatsoever of Firmino being fit for tonight.
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Two changes for Newcastle. As expected, Jamaal Lascelles returns to action, with Federico Fernandez making way in defence. In midfield, Ki replaces Jonjo Shelvey, who started against Brighton.
And five for Liverpool: Jurgen Klopp brings Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dejan Lovren into his defence, with Joel Matip and Joe Gomez making way from the side that lost against Barcelona. In midfield, Jordan Henderson starts in place of the injured Naby Keita, while James Milner is out of the side Daniel Sturridge will play up front, while Bobby Firmino is absent from Liverpool’s match-day squad.
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Newcastle United v Liverpool line-ups
Newcastle: Dubravka, Manquillo, Schar, Lascelles, Dummett, Ritchie, Perez, Ki, Hayden, Atsu, Rondon.
Subs: Shelvey, Diame, Muto, Kenedy, Fernandez, Barreca, Darlow.
Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, van Dijk, Robertson, Henderson, Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Salah, Sturridge, Mane.
Subs: Milner, Gomez, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Mignolet, Shaqiri, Origi, Matip.
Referee: Andre Marriner (West Midlands)
An intriguing sub-plot: Rafael Benitez was in charge of Liverpool when they last won a major trophy (with apologies to the 2006 FA Cup and 2012 League Cup), leading them to Champions League glory over AC Milan on an unforgettable May night in Istanbul 14 years ago.
Opinions are divided on how he will feel going into tonight’s game, but it’s difficult to imagine a man with his work ethic and winning mentality having any qualms whatsoever about throwing a spanner in the works as his former club try to win the title.
Indeed, one suspects that Benitez might quite like the fact that he was the boss the last time Liverpool enjoyed a major success and won’t be enamoured with the notion of some German upstart swanning into Merseyside and stealing his thunder with a title win.
Indeed, Benitez went close to winning the league title with Liverpool himself; in the 2008-09 Premier League season, they lost just twice as they finished just four points behind a Manchester United team that won eight and drew one of their final nine games in the run-in.
Early team news: In form Newcastle striker Ayoze Perez is expected to be fit to play tonight, despite limping out of his side’s draw with Brighton with a hip problem last weekend. With Sean Longstaff, DeAnre Yedlin and Florian Lejeune all sidelined, central defender Jamaal Lascelles is available for selection again after missing out on the Brighton game through illness.
Despite coming off the bench in Liverpool’s game against Barcelona, Roberto Firmino remains a doubt as he hasn’t fully recovered from a thigh muscle injury. He may be risked tonight, depending on whether or not his manager, Jurgen Klopp, considers the Champions League a lost cause. Having limped off with a groin injury in Barcelona, Naby Keita has played his last game of the season. His fellow midfielder Adam Lallana is also out.
Premier League: Newcastle v Liverpool
Following their defeat at the hands of Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday, Liverpool must attempt to put their disappointment behind them as their focus returns to the Premier League. With Manchester not due to play Leicester City until Monday, Liverpool can ramp up the pressure on their title rivals with a win over Newcastle, while any other result will also certainly cause irreparable harm to their chances of winning the league for the first time since 1990. Kick-off is at 7.45pm (BST), but stay tuned for team news and build-up in the meantime.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man City | 36 | 68 | 92 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 36 | 64 | 91 |
| 3 | Tottenham Hotspur | 37 | 28 | 70 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 36 | 21 | 68 |
| 5 | Arsenal | 36 | 20 | 66 |
