Newcastle ended a run of three straight defeats with a 1-1 draw at home to Manchester United at St James’ Park on Monday night.
Allan Saint-Maximin got them off to the dream start with a wonderful finish to hand them the lead. He was falling off balance after dribbling past Harry Maguire and managed to find the top corner with an excellent strike at the same time, with David de Gea rooted to the spot.
Edinson Cavani equalised in the second half as he prodded home a rebound from his own shot after Jamaal Lascelles’ initial block fell kindly to him in the box.
Both teams had chances to steal all three points at the death, more so the home side, but the points were shared in the end.
Forget Saint-Maximin
Whilst the French phenomenon on the wing scored Newcastle’s goal, it was Joelinton who stole the show as he produced a sensational display in central midfield for the Magpies.
He has taken to his new midfield role like a duck to water and this performance looked like one of a player who has been operating in that position for decades. The Brazilian made a big impact at both ends of the field and deserved to be on a winning side, but Eddie Howe will surely be delighted with his contribution towards getting a valuable point on the board.
Defensively, the 25-year-old worked tirelessly. As per SofaScore, he won eight duels throughout the 90 minutes. He made a whopping four tackles, three interceptions and two blocks, showing that he was constantly winning the ball back for the Magpies, in the process halting Manchester United attacks and creating counter opportunities for Newcastle on the breakaway.
Offensively, he was a creator. As per SofaScore, he completed three of his four long pass attempts and one of his two dribbles. He also created four chances for his teammates and was perhaps a tad unfortunate not to end the night with an assist to his name.
His performance was so good that Newcastle content creator Adam Widdrington went as far as to describe him as “unplayable” on the night.
This shows that he is capable of putting in midfield displays full of quality from both a defensive and offensive point of view, which could bode well for the rest of the campaign. If he continues to impress in that role, it could be where his long-future lies at St James’ Park.
AND in other news, NUFC must sign new Steven Taylor in £64k-p/w gem who Shearer dubbed “outstanding”…
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