Newcastle United found themselves a goal down to Liverpool at half-time on Monday night and could find it tricky to pick up any points after they were reduced to ten men heading into the break.
Newcastle are hoping to get their first Premier League win of the season against the Reds at St James’ Park after a goalless draw with Aston Villa last weekend.
The Magpies went head-to-head with Liverpool for a while until a superb strike from Ryan Gravenberch in the 35th minute put the visitors ahead.
Anthony Gordon complicated things for Newcastle ten minutes later after his yellow card was upgraded to red following a VAR review.
The makeshift Toons striker made a reckless challenge on Virgil van Dijk, and he was rightly sent off, leaving Alan Shearer fuming.
Here is how the Newcastle legend reacted on social media platform X after the decision.
What a stupid challenge man. It’s a red card all day. #NEWLIV 🤬🤬🤬
— Alan Shearer (@alanshearer) August 25, 2025
The England international will now miss the game against Leeds United before the international break, and he could be banned for longer.
A three-game ban could be on the cards for Gordon, which would also see him miss the league games against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Bournemouth.
The 24-year-old has now been sent off three times since joining Newcastle, and this latest red card could give manager Eddie Howe a big selection headache.
He is without the wantaway Alexander Isak, and the Sweden international is unlikely to be available for selection against Leeds on Saturday as he insists he wants to leave.
Howe now has to become creative with both Gordon and Isak set to be unavailable against the newly-promoted club, and failure to head into the break without a win will be a big blow.
Newcastle saw Wolves reject their £50 million bid for Norwegian striker Jorgen Strand Larsen today, while Brentford rejected a £40m bid from them for Yoane Wissa last week.