Updated / Sunday, 23 Aug 2026 20:10
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The game at St James' Park was Andoni Iraola's first Premier League game in charge
New Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola has said that his side didn't deserve to lose against Newcastle United after [Dominik Szoboszlai rescued a late point](https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2026/0823/1588898-szoboszlai-rescues-draw-for-liverpool-against-newcastle/) for the Reds at St James' Park.
Newcastle led 1-0 and 2-1, but Liverpool clawed their way back twice, finally securing a point with Szoboszlai's spot-kick in the ninth minute of stoppage time.
It was an underwhelming display against a Newcastle side that let itself down with a couple of costly defensive lapses.
"It's not the result you wanted before the game, but obviously finishing, scoring in the last minute, it gives you a better taste," Iraola said. "I don't think we deserve to lose the game today.
"I value the effort from the players, they never gave up, and at the end it arrived, and we could recover at least one point."
The Magpies' defence stood off early in the second half as Cody Gakpo cancelled out Anthony Elanga's opener, while Lewis Hall's foul on Liverpool's Victor Munoz in the box when the game was all but over cost them two valuable points.
"It's rough, especially 30 seconds before the end of the game, but that's a huge step for us. That's the mentality we need to have through the season," Newcastle forward Yoane Wissa said.
"The manager (Matthias Jaissle) came three weeks ago and gave us a lot of information, now we show on the pitch we are ready for the season. We needed this win to make a statement, but in the end we draw. We have so much to work on."