Newcastle United paid the value for Alexander Isak’s absence as they didn’t benefit from a formidable first-half exhibiting towards Liverpool, falling behind to a Ryan Gravenberch objective earlier than Anthony Gordon’s purple card deepened their worries up entrance.
The Magpies’ conflict with Liverpool, whom they beat within the EFL Cup remaining final season, kicked off towards the backdrop of the Isak saga, with Newcastle’s talisman refusing to coach or play in a bid to power by a transfer to the Premier League champions.
That made for a raucous environment at St James’ Park, the place Newcastle had been in management for lengthy durations, Gordon losing their greatest likelihood within the twenty eighth minute when he headed over from Harvey Barnes’ left-wing cross.
Gravenberch punished that profligacy seven minutes later, Liverpool’s returning midfielder silencing the house crowd by firing in off the left-hand put up from the sting of the world.
But the house followers had been delivered to life once more simply earlier than half-time, albeit in fury as false 9 Gordon was proven purple by Simon Hooper for a rash problem on Virgil Van Dijk.
Hooper had initially proven Gordon a yellow card. Nonetheless, after a pitchside overview, he dominated that Gordon’s contact with Van Dijk’s Achilles represented critical foul play, and he upgraded the sanction to a straight purple, leaving Newcastle with a mountain to climb to get something from the sport and with a major difficulty within the central placing position that was already an enormous downside due to Isak’s self-enforced absence.
