The New Year’s match was a firework from the first kick on the ball. Liverpool stormed into attack and could celebrate a goal when Luis Diaz found the back of the net. But a VAR check revealed a marginal offside on Darwin Núñez up front and the goal was disallowed. Shortly after, referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the penalty mark. Wataru Endo recovered the ball fabulously inside Newcastle’s half and the hosts countered effectively. Diaz stormed into the penalty area and fell to the ground after a touch on the leg by Dan Burn. Mohamed Salah stood up, ran forward and hammered the ball hard towards the center of the goal. There, Martin Dúbravka stood ready and averted. It was Salah’s fourth penalty miss in his last ten attempts. – When will Liverpool remove him as a penalty taker? wondered Gary Neville in the Sky Sports’ studio. Newcastle were under incredible pressure, but were not completely harmless going forward. They showed that with a great counterattack ten minutes before the break. The attack ended with a cross that found Dan Burn at the back post. The defender poked the ball into the goal, but an offside on Alexander Isak in front silenced the away fans’ cheers. PENALTY BOOM: Dubravka celebrates intensely in front of Salah after saving his penalty. Photo: CARL RECINE / Reuters – Does he knock straight down? Nunez in particular squandered chances for Liverpool and the frustration increased. Joelinton stopped a Liverpool counterattack effectively – but illegally – when he knowingly sent Dominik Szoboszlai to the ground. Referee Anthony Taylor ruled in favor and Joelinton escaped the yellow card. – He knocks him straight down. It’s the end of the night, Anthony Taylor., Viaplay’s commentator Andreas Toft raged. Not long after, Joelinton faced another offence, this time also without consequences in the form of a card. – What he is doing is a disaster, said expert commentator Tor Ole Skullerud about the sentencing. Nunez causes confusion Liverpool pushed on after the break. And four minutes after the change of sides, they got a real payoff. Nunez served Salah in front of goal who ended a magnificent Liverpool attack to send the reds into the lead. Soon after, Nunez got some gigantic opportunities, but it didn’t go his way for the Uruguayan, no matter how big the chances were. – What does it take for him to get the ball over the line? What few chances he gets, and he burns them all, Skullerud commented. HUGE CHANCE: Nunez burns a chance from close range. Photo: CARL RECINE / Reuters Nunez has five goals in the Premier League so far this season. According to the statistics service Squakwa, he is the player in the league with the worst result (21.3 per cent) on big chances. – It is of course correct to assess Darwin Núñez based on the number of goals, because he is a striker in a top team. But it is even more correct to assess him based on everything he adds to the team apart from scoring, because it is a lot, writes football expert Lars Tjærnås on X. – This match is absolutely sick Liverpool only managed to keep the lead for five minutes. For Newcastle striker Alexander Isak proved to be a bit more effective than Nunez this evening. The Swede was played free and was ice-cold when he placed the ball safely in the far corner, out of reach for Alisson. Liverpool did not give up, but a phenomenally good Dubravka in the visitors’ cage kept Eddie Howe’s men in the game. In the end, it didn’t work out for the goalkeeper either. But Liverpool played their way through Newcastle’s defense with razor-sharp precision, and in the end Curtis Jones was able to roll the ball into an open goal. After ten goalless games, Nunez substitute Cody Gakpo made it 3–1 a few minutes later. SUB: Gakpo came in and scored. Photo: Jon Super / AP The battle was not over, however. On the eve of the match, Sven Botman put in a dead ball and ensured a hectic end to the match. However, Liverpool’s composure sank again when the referee pointed to the penalty mark again. For this time, Salah was able to outwit Dubravka from the penalty spot. – This match is absolutely sick, Skullerud concluded. Liverpool started the year with a win and sit at the top of the Premier League, three points ahead of Aston Villa.
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Goal show for Liverpool in a chaotic match – the super striker’s waste of chances creates astonishment – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
