Football Features

Newcastle 1-0 Man Utd: Several stars fail to perform for Red Devils in another away defeat

By Harry Edwards

Published: 22:10, 2 December 2023

Newcastle United closed the gap on the top four with a 1-0 win over Manchester United on Saturday night.

After a goalless first half in which Newcastle did dominate, the Magpies took the lead early after the break through Anthony Gordon, which proved to be the only goal of the game.

It was the first time Newcastle have beaten Man Utd in consecutive league games since October 1972, and the first time they’ve recorded three wins in a row over the Red Devils since January 1922.

Here’s how the players rated at St James’ Park:

Newcastle

Nick Pope – 6 – Made a good save on Garnacho in the first half but was otherwise a spectator. Hurt himself making a dive and had to come off. If it’s serious, he’ll be a massive miss.

Kieran Trippier – 8 – Was up against Garnacho and mostly won the battle. He also pulled the strings, being allowed way too much time on the ball. His passing unlocked the Man Utd defence on numerous occasions and he was unlucky to see an excellent free-kick hit the crossbar and bounce the wrong side of the line. His pass to Gordon at the far post was great.

Jamaal Lascelles – 7 – Honestly had more action in the opposition box than his own. Made sure Newcastle’s defence was water-tight.

Fabian Schar – 8 – Constantly looked to bring the ball out of the defence and he did it well, causing some problems for Man Utd’s midfield. Great block on Reguilon’s shot, but he was lucky not to be punished for a bad tackle on Fernandes.

Tino Livramento – 8 – Out of position on the left once more, this was another great game for the young Englishman. He thrived up against Wan-Bissaka and was allowed to bomb down the flank with little resistance.

Lewis Miley – 8 – Played like he was a Premier League veteran making his 200th appearance in midfield. Looked very comfortable and not out of place at all at this level. He’s a gem.

Bruno Guimaraes – 8 – Was everywhere in the Newcastle midfield, holding when he needed to hold and pushing high up the pitch when required. Good pass into Trippier in the build up for the opener.

Joelinton – 7 – Pushed out to the left but his passing left a lot to be desired in the early stages. But then he got into the game and was influential as Newcastle’s midfield barely gave Man Utd a moment’s rest.

Miguel Almiron – 7 – Ran his socks off and was the busier of the two wingers, pressing Dalot and getting in behind on multiple occasions. He made a number of good runs but his final pass let him down.

Alexander Isak – 6 – Had a few chances but he was more involved in holding the ball up for Newcastle, linking up well with his fellow attackers. Perhaps should have done better with a shock blocked in the first half.

Anthony Gordon – 7 – Wasn’t too involved in the first half on the ball, though he joined in in the press. There were some worries of him having picked up an injury in the early stages of the second half but he eased those with a good run at the far post to tap in and put Newcastle ahead.

Substitutes:

Martin Dubravka (for Pope 85) – N/A – A late sub.

Matt Ritchie (for Gordon 90) – N/A – A late sub.

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Man Utd

Andre Onana – 6 – Didn’t look confident from the first corner, which made him a target from subsequent set pieces. Did make a good save on an Almiron shot, though he couldn’t do anything about the goal.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 6 – Was overrun defensively with no help from his teammates. Did well in a few one-on-one battles but was then caught out for the opening goal. Great block on Miley’s shot in the second half.

Harry Maguire – 8 – One of the few Man Utd players who come out of this game looking good. He was immense defensively and without him Man Utd could have conceded five or six. There were a number of good tackles and a great block on a shot from Fabian Schar. The renaissance continues, though he was unfortunate to see Antony’s equaliser ruled out for offside, just unable to get out of the way.

Luke Shaw – 7 – Alongside Maguire, he was strong defensively and helped protect Onana’s goal. His inclusion at centre-back was more than justified and he’ll be annoyed that his and Maguire’s defensive work resulted in nothing, thanks to the rest of the team.

Diogo Dalot – 4 – On the left, in the early stages he got away with making a mess defensively, with a touch rebounding onto his arm in the box — he clearly didn’t trust Onana. Beaten quite a few times by the pairing of Almiron and Trippier.

Scott McTominay – 4 – Practically non-existent in the Man Utd midfield. What his role was, is hard to know, as he didn’t really do anything in defensive or pushing forward.

Kobbie Mainoo – 5 – Was calm on the ball, but this was a struggle in midfield for the youngster. A game perhaps too big for him right now, though he wasn’t helped by his teammates.

Marcus Rashford – 3 – Woeful. He wasn’t in the game at all and was a hindrance more than a help for his team. Not involved in the attack and terrible defensively, leaving his full-back overrun.

Bruno Fernandes – 6 – Man Utd’s only real attacking moments came through him, including a great pass to set up Garnacho. Did his bit defensively, and just about came out positively as a player. But as a captain he was poor, unable to rally his team after they went behind and not standing up to be counted.

Alejandro Garnacho – 5 – Asked some questions of Trippier in the early stages and had a shot straight at Pope, but that was pretty much it. Didn’t cause enough problems over the game as a whole and didn’t help defensively. He was weak in the battle in midfield in the build up to Newcastle’s opener, just allowing Trippier to get the ball ahead of him.

Anthony Martial – 4 – Apart from a good run to win a free-kick just before the half-hour mark, Martial really wasn’t involved.

Substitutes:

Rasmus Hojlund (for Martial 61) – 5 – Wasn’t really involved in the game, given no service.

Antony (for Rashford 61) – 6 – Thought he had pulled Man Utd level but his shot rebounded off Maguire.

Sergio Reguilon (for Wan-Bissaka 80) – 6 – Tested Newcastle’s defence more than any player in a Man Utd shirt despite being a left-back and playing only 10 minutes.

Nordin Amrabat (for Mainoo 80) – 5 – Dealt with Isak on a break, albeit with a bit of a hold on his shirt. A less lenient ref might have given something against him, which would have surely brought a red card.

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