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Teenager Rio Ngumoha made history as Liverpool’s youngest-ever goalscorer with a cool 100th-minute finish, giving his team a 3-2 win in a crazy match at Newcastle.
Played in a hostile atmosphere due to Liverpool’s ugly pursuit of Newcastle striker Alexander Isak – who has gone on strike in a bid to force a move – the game ignited further when Anthony Gordon was sent off for raking down the legs of Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk in the first half.
The Reds went to a 2-0 lead early in the second half before 10-man Newcastle roared back to level at 2-2.
However, the 16-year-old Ngumoha’s intervention denied them a priceless point.
The Reds were already leading through Ryan Gravenberch’s 35th-minute strike against the run of play after surviving an early onslaught when Gordon was dismissed for a late challengevan Dijk, and Hugo Ekitike’s strike seconds after halftime looked to have killed Monday night’s game off.
As the travelling fans sang “hand him over, Newcastle” – a reference to their club’s pursuit of Isak – Bruno Guimaraes reduced the deficit with a 57th-minute header, and Osula’s late equaliser sparked a frenzied conclusion.
“Relief, because if you are 2-0 up against 10 men…they brought it back to 2-2 and maybe it was even deserved,” was the assessment of Liverpool manager Arne Slot.
“Then they had more chances than we had. Their fans were so loud – wow! It was an amazing atmosphere. To end with a goal during the best attack we had…the feeling is relief. We found a way to win.”
In a frenetic start, the hosts exerted early pressure on a Reds defence featuring Dominik Szoboszlai as a makeshift right-back, although it was Nick Pope who had to make the game’s first save, diving to his left to keep out Florian Wirtz’s curled 14th-minute effort.
Alisson Becker was relieved to see Gordon’s header from Harvey Barnes’ 28th-minute cross just clear his crossbar, and Szobozslai did well to take the pace off the striker’s stabbed attempt from an Anthony Elanga delivery to allow his goalkeeper to mop up seconds later.
But it was Liverpool, who had succeeded in taking some of the sting out of the game, who took the lead when Gravenberch’s speculative 25-yard strike caught an unsighted Pope flat-footed as it sped into the bottom corner.
Curtis Jones failed to make meaningful contact with Mohamed Salah’s first-time cross three minutes before the break, but his side’s cause was boosted significantly in first-half added time when, after referee Simon Hooper was asked to review of Gordon’s challenge on Van Dijk, he sent off the frontman for serious foul play.
The Magpies’ task grew in difficulty within 23 seconds when Ekitike – the man they tried to sign before Liverpool snapped him up – was allowed time and space to fire home off the foot of Pope’s right post.
Newcastle gave themselves hope when Guimaraes climbed above Milos Kerkez at the far post to head the excellent Tino Livramento’s cross into the bottom corner and breathe new life into the contest.
The 11 men became increasingly jittery as Newcastle pushed for an equaliser, and they were undone with two minutes remaining when Osula ran on to Pope’s long free kick and steered a first-time shot past the advancing Alisson, only for Premier League debutant Ngumoha to claim victory at the death.
Aged 16 years and 361 days, Ngumoha is Liverpool’s youngest ever goalscorer.
His 100th-minute winner meant he bettered the Reds’ previous best held by Ben Woodburn, who was on the scoresheet against Leeds United in November 2016 when 17 years and 45 days old.