· 26 August 2025, 11:30
Newcastle United battled hard at St James' Park last night, and while they didn't come away with any points, they certainly sent a message to Liverpool and every other Premier League side.
The Magpies are bruised after a difficult summer; there's no denying that. The ongoing saga with Alexander Isak continues to take a toll, and yet, the players who are playing for the club are giving their all.
From start to finish, every player who stepped onto that pitch in a black and white shirt last night gave absolutely everything and executed Eddie Howe's game plan just how he wanted.
After Anthony Gordon's sending off, things had to change, and after a brief adjustment period at the start of the second half, the team adapted and regained superiority.
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Arne Slot is starting to get infected with Liverpoolness
It was one of the most entertaining games of football we've seen in a long time, but Arne Slot said to Sky Sports at full-time that he didn't watch a game of football as he moaned about Newcastle's tactics, much like his predecessor Jurgen Klopp would have done.
"I'm not too sure if I saw a football match.
"It was set-piece after set-piece, long throws. It didn't have a lot to do with tactics. But I liked a lot how we stood strong."
The reason it was set-piece after set-piece, Arne, was that your dirty players were scything down our lads at every opportunity. Then, yes, we started to give it back, and it made for a stop-start affair, but it didn't reduce the entertainment factor at all.
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Who was your Man of the Match against Liverpool?
Nick Pope
Kieran Trippier
Fabian Schar
Dan Burn
Tino Livramento
Sandro Tonali
Bruno Guimaraes
Joelinton
Anthony Elanga
Anthony Gordon
Harvey Barnes
Malick Thiaw
Lewis Miley
Jacob Ramsey
Lewis Hall
Will Osula
11 votes · 2 days left
We're one goal scorer away from being a top side
That's two top performances for Newcastle now, and all that was missing from both was a goal scorer. The difference that having Alexander Isak on the pitch would have made in both games is there for all to see.
But whether Isak would give the same level of performance as the 11 players on the pitch in the last two games is highly doubtful, and that's what would make the difference.
If we keep playing like this, with the same intensity and passion, we'll be there or thereabouts come May, no doubt.