{"id":1310293,"date":"2023-05-22T22:15:33","date_gmt":"2023-05-22T21:15:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?p=1310293"},"modified":"2023-05-22T22:17:28","modified_gmt":"2023-05-22T21:17:28","slug":"newcastle-leicester-premier-league-player-ratings","status":"publish","type":"features","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/features\/newcastle-leicester-premier-league-player-ratings\/","title":{"rendered":"Newcastle 0-0 Leicester: Player ratings as Magpies confirm Champions League football"},"content":{"rendered":"

Newcastle have confirmed their place in next season’s Champions League after drawing 0-0 with Leicester in the Premier League on Monday — making it mathematically\u00a0impossible for Liverpool to catch them.<\/b><\/p>\n

Eddie Howe’s men needed only a point, but in typical style they went for the jugular from minute one. In the end, though, the shares were spoiled as Dean Smith set up in, what looked (at times) like a back eight, as they isolated their two forwards.<\/p>\n

Newcastle peppered the Leicester goal and dominated the ball, but the relegation-threatened club held on for a precious point and even had a chance to win it late on.<\/p>\n

Here is how the players rated at St. James’ Park:<\/p>\n

Newcastle<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Nick Pope – 6 – <\/strong>A virtual bystander for most of the contest as Leicester refused to ask questions of him — but he produced the goods late on to deny Castagne.<\/p>\n

Kieran Trippier – 7 –\u00a0<\/strong>Newcastle’s playmaker grandmaster, he functioned as a quasi-winger for most of the game and devastated Leicester’s backline with his razor-sharp crosses.<\/p>\n

Fabian Schar – 7 – <\/strong>Held his own to keep Iheanacho and Vardy muzzled. In truth, the Newcastle backline was scarcely called into action, but he made a potentially match-saving interception late into the game to prevent Barnes rushing through.<\/p>\n

Sven Botman – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>He’ll pat himself for a clean sheet and dealing with Leicester’s attempted balls over the top, but he’ll have busier games than this as Smith’s side set up with little attacking impetus, save for the final few minutes.<\/p>\n

Dan Burn – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Held his nerve on the flank and looked to pile forward in his typically-marauding fashion. The unorthodox full-back was a threat from set-pieces as he tussled with Iversen, but a lack of cutting edge let him down at times in the final third.<\/p>\n

Bruno Guimaraes – 7 –\u00a0<\/strong>Newcastle’s metronome. They dominated this game because of the Brazilian’s ball retention capabilities and passing precision. He got stuck in from minute one with a high boot and struck the post with what looked like an open goal. Simply put: he was the main character in this bizarre game of attack-versus-defence.<\/p>\n\n

Sean Longstaff – 7 – <\/strong>Instigated attacking transitions and kept play ticking over for Newcastle. Howe’s men struck the woodwork thrice, so can be considered unfortunate for not winning this affair. And Longstaff was key to that attacking intent, with his surging, lung-busting runs.<\/p>\n

Elliot Anderson – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Parachuted in as a late replacement for the injured Joelinton, the Scotland U21 international held his own in the middle of the park to keep his side ticking over. He linked up with Isak well for much of the contest and exploited the half space with vigour.<\/p>\n

Miguel Almiron – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Showed plenty of flair and dazzled in spells, but just lacked that bit of consistency to produce something tangible. Menacing no less, though.<\/p>\n

Alexander Isak – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Similar to Almiron, the lanky Swede had his moments of success against Castagne, with his quick feet and blurry-eyed sprints, but he was often wayward with his shooting, with his four efforts yielding just one on target.<\/p>\n

Callum Wilson – 5 – <\/strong>Can’t be faulted for his effort, the typically-lethal marksman had plenty of gilt-edged chances, but his shooting boots evaded him tonight as he struck the post and missed a clear headed opportunity.<\/p>\n

Substitutes:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Allan Saint-Maximin (for Wilson 68′) – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Showed ambition and skill when he entered the fray to just give Newcastle a new lease of life.<\/p>\n

Jacob Murphy (for<\/b> Anderson 77′) – 5 – <\/b>Introduced late on and didn’t really have a huge impact.<\/p>\n

Anthony Gordon (for Almiron 88′) – N\/A – <\/strong>Came on as a late substitute.<\/p>\n\n

Leicester<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Daniel Iversen – 5 –\u00a0<\/strong>Pulled off a half-decent reaction save on Isak in the second half, but he was extremely unreliable in the opening 45 minutes. A dropped catch nearly gifted Wilson an opener 40 minutes in, only to be saved by the woodwork. And moments later he had another brain fart. A whipped Trippier corner eluded his reckless rush out, leaving the goal at Wilson’s mercy, only for the England international to spare his blushes once more with a missed effort. Very erratic.<\/p>\n

Timothy Castagne – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Was on the back foot and struggled to deal with Isak in the first half, but he grew into the game and nearly stole a winner late on.<\/p>\n

Wout Faes – 7 –\u00a0<\/strong>Put his body on the line and fought for the cause. When Newcastle probed, the curly-haired destroyer was there to put fires out. He nearly gifted Bruno in the second half, but was fortunate to get out of jail.<\/p>\n

Harry Souttar – 7 –\u00a0<\/strong>Imposing, aggressive and aerially strong, the towering Aussie was flying into every shot, lunging like a madman and blocking like his life depended on it.<\/p>\n

Jonny Evans – 7 –\u00a0<\/strong>The skipper got the memo. When he left the pitch injured on the hour mark, he was the only player with clearances in the double digits (11). He threw his body at absolutely everything, and hoofed it away freely to avert danger. It was a rudimentary approach, but one that Leicester felt they needed in order to stop the goals leaking in. Evans embodied the no-nonsense gambit.<\/p>\n

Luke Thomas – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Looked nervous in the first half as Almiron turned him this way and that, but the fresh-faced full-back done well to roll his socks up and preserve Leicester’s clean sheet.<\/p>\n

Wilfred Ndidi – 6 – <\/strong>Anchored the midfield well enough with a match-high five tackles, but lacked any form of composure when on the ball to provide his side with some respite.<\/p>\n\n

Boubakary Soumare – 5 – <\/strong>Got stuck in and formed a solid enough barrier in front of Leicester’s defence, but Smith’s midfield was absolutely overwhelmed tonight.<\/p>\n

Youri Tielemans – 5 – <\/strong>The Belgian should have been the release valve, taking pressure away with his precision passing, but he was unnaturally erratic — no doubt a by-product of the lack of options in front of him.<\/p>\n

Kelechi Iheanacho – 4<\/strong> – Cut an isolated figure up front in that opening 45 minutes as Leicester battened down the hatches and camped out in their own half with very little intent to attack.<\/p>\n

Jamie Vardy – 4 –\u00a0<\/strong>That pattern of play spilled over to the start of the second half as Leicester retreated further into their own box and left Vardy up front to fend for himself. The ageing forward was feeding off scraps and naturally struggled.<\/p>\n

Substitutes:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

James Maddison (for Iheanacho 45′) – 6 –\u00a0<\/strong>Tried to make things happen and provide a spark, notably with his delivery to Castagne late into the game.<\/p>\n

Harvey Barnes (for Vardy 63′) – 5 –\u00a0<\/strong>Showed heart and drive, but ultimately not enough to change the complexion of the game.<\/p>\n

Patson Daka (for Evans 63′) – 5 –\u00a0<\/strong>Same as the above. There was more pace and flair about Leicester’s attack, but not enough.<\/p>\n

Nampalys Mendy (for Ndidi 89′) – N\/A –<\/strong>Came on as a late substitute.<\/p>\n

Read more:<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n