Darwin Núñez and Cody Gakpo scored first-half goals as Liverpool picked up a huge 3 points at St. James' Park with a massive 2-0 win over Newcastle Saturday evening. The win moves the Reds to 8th place on EPL Table, just 6 points behind Newcastle, who are sitting 4th, with a game in hand over the Magpies for the final Champions League spot.
Alisson started the match with a big save in the 4th minute as both sides began at a frenetic pace. Stefan Bajcetic had a shot blocked in the 7th minute, but it was Darwin Núñez who broke through in the 10th. Trent Alexander-Arnold played a ball down the middle to Núñez who found the back of the net with a strong strike and a 1-0 lead.
The Reds scored again in the 17th minute and this time it was Cody Gakpo that did the honours. Mohamed Salah chipped a ball in the box and Gakpo got enough of a foot on it to ripple the net as the Reds were two goals to the good.
The match took another turn in the 22nd minute as Newcastle goalie Nick Pope was sent off for a clear handball outside the box. The Magpies showed plenty of fight playing a man down. They forced Alisson into a save in the 33rd minute and Dan Burn hit the crossbar in the 41st minute, but the ball stayed out as Liverpool took a 2-0 lead into the locker room.
Second Half
Newcastle continued to play well in the second half. Alexander Isak put a shot high in the 52nd minute. After another Magpie miss, Núñez forced a save, but injured his shoulder and was taken off near the hour mark.
Harvey Elliott was denied a goal in the 68th minute thanks to a nice save. Alisson returned the favour in the 82nd minute when Newcastle star Callum Wilson was in on goal, but the Reds' keeper was up to the challenge. Diogo Jota had a couple of chances of headers late on, but they went wide as Liverpool settled for the 2-0 win.
Make It Double
Liverpool are likely the last team Newcastle want to see on their schedule for a while. They only have 2 losses in EPL play, both coming to the Reds. The victory was only Liverpool's third win away from Anfield in league play this season with the others coming against Tottenham and Aston Villa.
Alisson Keeps it Clean
Because Liverpool were playing a man up for most of the match, Alisson's performance in goal could be overlooked, but the Brazilian keeper was brilliant. He made a big stop in the third minute and kept a short-handed Magpie side off the scoreboard when they were able to generate chances with just 10 men. In all, Alisson recorded 4 saves en route to his second consecutive clean sheet.
Cause For Concern?
Even though Liverpool will gladly take 3 away points, the fact that they were outshot 14-13 by a Newcastle side playing with 10 men has to be a concern addressed by Jürgen Klopp in the dressing room. Also, Liverpool left plenty of goals on the pitch that could come back to haunt them if their place in the final Premier League standings is decided by goal difference.
LFC Globe Verdict
Any win in EPL play is big. Considering that this came against Newcastle on their home pitch where they had not previously lost this season? That's huge. It snapped the Magpie's club record EPL unbeaten streak at 17 games and gave Liverpool tons of momentum heading into the Reds' highly-anticipated Champions League tie with Real Madrid Tuesday, February 21st at 20:00 GMT.
There is some cause for concern, as noted above, but the result of the match is certainly worth celebrating.
Man Of The Match & What's Next
Darwin Núñez has had plenty of good games so far this season, but he has often failed to find the back of the net. Today he did. Hopefully, that opens the scoring floodgates for the striker and the knock he took during the match is not too serious to add to the tally of injuries.
What's Next
Liverpool have little time to recuperate as they face Real Madrid on Tuesday February 21st at Anfield. Kickoff is set for 20:00 GMT / 15:00 EST.
A list of streams will be available on our page Liverpool FC streams.
Goals
Liverpool
- Darwin Núñez 10'
- Cody Gakpo 17'
Newcastle
None
Substitutions
Liverpool
- Harvey Elliott for Jordan Henderson 59'
- Roberto Firmino for Darwin Núñez 59'
- James Milner for Stefan Bajcetic 59'
- Diogo Jota for Cody Gakpo 59'
Newcastle
- Martin Dúbravka' for Elliot Anderson 24'
- Jacob Murphy for Kieran Tripper 64'
- Anthony Gordon for Miguel Almiron 64'
- Callum Wilson for Alexander Isak 64'
- Matt Ritchie for Joelinton 81'
