17 August 2024
Newcastle 1 Southampton 0
When Newcastle were taken over by the Saudi state, fans thought their club were going to be up there with the likes of PSG and Real Madrid on the transfer front. Since then, the lavish signings have failed to materialise and The Magpies find themselves still looking to end their 69-year wait for major silverware. Southampton made the long trip to St James’ Park on the opening weekend.
It was the visitors who started on the front foot and everything The Saints did well came through Smallbone in the heart of midfield. He played a neat pass to Aribo who returned the favour in the box. As the midfielder swept the ball towards goal, it was slotted home by Stephens at the back post. Sadly for the fans who had made the long trip from the south coast it was immediately ruled out for offside.
Russell Martin’s side did not let that put them off and continued to press. Ex-Newcastle player Adam Armstrong let fly from some distance but he could not keep his shot down. After the season he had last campaign, you would have expected him to work the keeper at the very least. Then came what seemed to be a turning point in this match.
Brereton Diaz and Schar had a coming together before the Newcastle defender motioned his head towards the Chilean. He immediately went to ground clutching his face. In the melee that followed, Burn tried picking him up off the floor before the referee came rushing over to try and defuse the situation. He then opted to give the Swiss international a straight red card for the altercation.
Despite having the man advantage the visitors then hit the self-destruct button. A poor pass from McCarthy gifted the ball to Isak. As it was squared to Joelinton, he checked onto his left foot and slotted the ball into the bottom corner of the goal. It was largely against the run of play but the home fans will feel it was justified considering the sending off of The Magpies’ defender.
St James’ Park erupted into a cauldron of noise with the best part of 50,000 fans celebrating. Now Newcastle had something to hold onto, much needed given the fact they were down to ten men. This would really test the tactical nous of both managers, for very different reasons. If ever The Magpies needed their fans to act like a twelfth man, or in this case eleventh, it was now.
Neither side created much in terms of clear-cut chances for the remainder of the half. Southampton were dominating possession and could be justified in feeling hard done by to be behind in this game. After the interval The Saints continued to open up the hosts with their passing football. As the ball was cut back from the byline, Armstrong’s shot beat Pope but was cleared off the line by Hall. Brereton-Diaz followed up but his effort was deflected behind for a corner.
Eddie Howe stood on the touchline barking orders at the players with his partner in crime alongside him. That person is his number two, Jason Tindall. If you have never seen him before, just picture what your dad would look like if he went to Turkey for a fortnight. The guy has more to say for himself than an army of parrots. Quite the divisive figure.
The pantomime villain at St James’ Park for the afternoon was to be Brereton Diaz. After the part he played in Schar’s sending off he was duly booed by the fans every time he touched the ball. If things don’t go well for him with The Saints it may be an idea to loan him to Africa to end third world hunger. The forward can seemingly make a meal out of anything.
Albeit early in his Saints’ career, the former Blackburn man seems to be building a good partnership with Armstrong. They linked up again before Armstrong fired a shot off at goal. It seemed to be heading into the top corner until a full-stretch save from Pope acrobatically turned it around the post. They missed him last season when he was out injured.
The visitors continued to pile the pressure on Newcastle. Walker-Peters crossed to the edge of the box and Downes spotted the unmarked Armstrong at the back post. His shot took a deflection before narrowly missing the near post. It was hearts in mouths time for the Geordie faithful. Southampton were knocking on the door so much it is a surprise it didn’t come off its hinges.
Pope continued to make save after save to keep his side ahead in the game. The Saints must have wondered what they were going to have to do to beat him. Plenty of the Newcastle players seemed dead on their feet towards the end of the game, having to cover so much ground due to the numerical advantage of the visitors. Try as they might, they could not find a way through and The Magpies held on for all three points.
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