Newcastle United v Brentford: Eddie Howe’s side are back in Premier League action at St James’ Park on Saturday.
The Magpies sit three points behind Brentford in the table with 14 games remaining. Eddie Howe’s side currently sit 11th and will be looking to climb into the top half and potentially leapfrog The Bees with a win.
Newcastle lost last time out at St James’ Park with Aston Villa securing a 2-0 win - it was their first home defeat since a last-minute 2-1 loss against Arsenal in September.
But United have a strong record against The Bees at St James’ Park, having won each of their last four meetings at home.
Ahead of the match, a key appointment was announced that is sure to have an impact on the game.
The Gazette has launched a new WhatsApp NUFC channel to bring the latest news, analysis and team & injury updates directly to your phone.Simply click this linkto join our NUFC WhatsApp channel.
Match officials announced for Newcastle United v Brentford
Andy Madley has been appointed as referee for the match at St James’ Park. He will be assisted by Dan Cook and Craig Taylor with Rob Jones as the fourth official.
John Brooks will be on VAR duty, assisted by Mark Scholes.
It’s Madley’s first match back at St James’ Park since the controversial 2-2 draw with Chelsea back in September.
Newcastle led 2-0 at half-time thanks to a Nick Woltemade brace before a contentiously awarded but well-executed Reece James free-kick pulled Chelsea back into the game.
Then the major controversy came as Anthony Gordon was brought down in the area by Trevoh Chalobah. Newcastle were adamant they should have had a penalty but Madley waved away the appeals and a VAR check from Peter Bankes upheld the decision.
In the immediate aftermath of that call, the Premier League Match Centre released a statement on the decision, writing on X: “The referee’s call of no penalty to Newcastle was checked and confirmed by VAR – with the contact from Chalobah on Gordon deemed to be side-to-side in a shielding action and the ball within playing distance.”
NUFC submit official complaint after controversial decision
Several pundits, former referees and Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe himself hit out at the decision not to award a penalty, which was branded as one of the worst refereeing calls of the season so far.
The fallout of the incident saw Newcastle submit a formal complaint to Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) to seek clarity on what the decision was made.
Had Newcastle converted the penalty, they would have gone 3-1 up and put themselves in a great position to win the game. Instead the decision went against them and Chelsea capitalised with Joao Pedro making it 2-2 shortly afterwards.
Speaking after the match, Howe said: “Yes, we will be seeking clarification.
“That call has already gone in, not from me personally, but from the club. We just want to know the thought process behind the decision.”
Asked if the feedback will change how his side approach defending in the penalty box, Howe added: “That’s a dangerous thing! I wouldn’t want to train my players to deliver that kind of challenge in the box. That would give the referee a decision to make.
“One of the arts of defending is not to put yourself in that position. I still believe it was a clear penalty having reviewed it. But it wasn’t given and my time is best spent looking forward and not back.”
Continue Reading