Continuing the series
where I look back at my five favourite wins the Liverpool’s next
opponents. This weekend Liverpool travel
to St. James’ Park to meet Newcastle United and here are my five favourite wins
from past encounters.
20th September
1987
NEWCASTLE (0) 1 (McDonald
pen 60)
LIVERPOOL (2) 4 (Nicol 20, 47, 70, Aldridge 37)
NEWCASTLE: Kelly; Anderson, Roeder, P. Jackson, McDonald; Hodges
(D. Jackson), McCreery, Stephenson, Wharton; Goddard, Mirandinha
LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Gillespie (Spackman), Lawrenson, Hansen, Venison
, Nicol; McMahon, Whelan; Beardsley, Aldridge, Barnes
Liverpool had won all but
one of their first 5 matches, drawing the other, at the start of the 1987-88 season. In contrast, Newcastle had just one win
losing 3 others. In the Newcastle
line-up was the first Brazilian player to play in the First Division,
Mirandinha. He had replaced Peter
Beardsley who’d moved to Liverpool. It
was Beardsley’s first return to St. James’ Park, and the country was beginning
to get a glimpse of what was to become the best Liverpool side I’ve ever seen.
20 minutes in and Barnes
picked up the play just inside his own half on the left. He beat two players and then laid the ball
off to Beardsley who was hugging the touchline.
Barnes continued his run and Beardsley played the ball neatly into
Barnes’ path and now Newcastle were stretched.
Barnes ball into the area was dealt with poorly by Anderson and Steve
Nicol was first to the ball to slot it past Kelly for the opening goal. Nicol then had a goal disallowed with Aldridge
offside before Aldridge himself added a second when Beardsley found Nicol free
on the right, he played it back to Venison, who joined the attack, and the
former Sunderland defender’s curling cross was headed back into the 6-yard box
by Barnes at the far post and there was Aldridge to finish for his 6th
of the season as he maintained his record of scoring in every game he’d started
for Liverpool. Within minutes of the
second half the lead was 3 goals, Lawrenson took advantage of the home defence
pushing up and played a long ball to set Beardsley free on the left of the
area. As he settled himself it was Nicol
who was furthest forward and Beardsley just waited for the right time and then
squared the ball for Nicol to tap in from close range.
Newcastle had lost both
their home matches so far this season and were now staring at the possibility
of a rout but on the hour, Goddard linked with Mirandinha who was then brought
down by Gillespie in the box. McDonald
converted the spot-kick for what was no more than a consolation. 10 minutes later and Liverpool restored their
3-goal advantage with the best goal of the afternoon. Aldridge came deep to collect the ball,
turned and saw Nicol running into the space he’d created. Nicol was away and clear of any defender and
as he reached the area he waited for Kelly to advance off his line and without
checking his stride, calmly chipped the ball over the desperate keeper for a
finish of pure impudence and the completion of his hat-trick. Liverpool were comfortable winners and, as
they did so many times that season, just made the whole process seem so
effortless.
Liverpool won the League
at a canter, finishing 9pts ahead of Man Utd in 2nd and 17pts ahead
of Nottingham Forest in 3rd.
Newcastle eventually recovered from their poor start to the season to
finish 8th.
30th August 1998
NEWCASTLE (1) 1 (Guivarc’h
28)
LIVERPOOL (4) 4 (Owen 17, 18, 32,
Berger 45)
NEWCASTLE: Given; Serrant (Barton), Charvet, Watson (Dabizas),
Pearce; Lee, Hamann (Glass), Albert, Speed; Guivarc’h, Shearer
LIVERPOOL: Friedel; Heggem, Carragher, Babb, Staunton; McManaman
(Thompson), Redknapp (McAteer), Ince, Berger; Owen, Riedle
This game was all about
Michael Owen. The 18-year old had just
become an international sensation during the World Cup in the summer and he was
in rich goalscoring form. Ruud Gullit
had recently replaced Kenny Dalglish as Newcastle manager and he promised to
bring ‘sexy football’ to Tyneside. But
for some, Owen’s performance was better than sex. Liverpool were under the uncomfortable
partnership of Roy Evans and Gerard Houllier and there was less confusion over
their selection than for the home side as Gullit decided to watch from the
comfort of the directors box.
The early exchanges were
fierce as tackles flew in and Newcastle looked more adventurous than their
opponents. Liverpool had tried to put
Owen through a couple of times and then in the 17th minute Newcastle
failed to properly clear a free-kick.
The ball came out to Paul Ince who fired a shot from 30 yards which
Given could only parry and Owen was first to react and his shot was too strong
for Given to keep out at his near post and Liverpool were in front. Newcastle were shaken and struggled to avoid
giving the ball away as Liverpool started to pass the ball around with
confidence. McManaman began to exert his
influence and picked the ball up in the centre-circle, waited for Owen to make
his run and threaded a lovely ball through for the youngster to run onto and he
coolly slipped it through Given’s legs for his 2nd goal in a
minute.
10 minutes later and
Newcastle were still struggling to find any rhythm when Babb was dispossessed
deep in his own half by Lee and as the Newcastle midfielder surged forward
Liverpool were outnumbered in defence and he squared the ball for Guivarc’h to
score his first goal for his new club. Newcastle
still didn’t seem to be in the game but at least they were in touching
distance, until 4 minutes later when Owen put the game beyond them with the
best goal of the day. The move started
with a clearance from Friedel which fell to Charvet in his own half on the
centre-circle. He dwelt too long on the
ball and Riedle nipped in to rob him, finding Owen who was now free to run at
the defence. Owen beat the first
challenge, then skipped past Albert and then as Given came out Owen knocked the
ball past him with the outside of his right foot for a stunning first half
hat-trick. Owen was in the sublime form
and few defences could handle him.
As the first half moved
into stoppage time Friedel cleared the ball downfield and Berger was quick to
steal it as he too skipped past a challenge and then on the edge of the area he
fired a left-foot shot past Given and Liverpool were now 4-1 up after just 45
minutes. In contrast to a scintillating
first period the second half was a bit of an anti-climax as the home side made
little progress and Liverpool were comfortable winners. They ended the season in a disappointing 7th
with Newcastle back in 13th.
24th November
2007
NEWCASTLE (0) 0
LIVERPOOL (1) 3 (Gerrard
27, Kuyt 46, Babel
66)
NEWCASTLE: Given; Beye, Rozehnal, Enrique (Carr), Emre (Barton);
N’Zogbia (Milner), Geremi, Butt, Smith; Martins, Viduka
LIVERPOOL: Reina; Arbeloa, Hyypia, Carragher, Finnan; Gerrard
(Crouch), Sissoko, Lucas, Kewell (Babel); Kuyt (Riise), Torres
When Liverpool arrived at
St. James’ Park in November 2007 they were unbeaten and sitting in 5th. Newcastle were a little less settled as Sam
Allardyce had taken over the reins from Glenn Roeder and they were down in 11th,
thanks largely to their home form.
Allardyce and Benitez
have never seen eye-to-eye and the Liverpool manager seemed to enjoy the perils
his opposite number was enduring, as the Geordie crowd appeared increasingly
exasperated with proceedings. Liverpool
were by far the more settled side as some of the Newcastle players seemed
unsure of where they were supposed to be playing. Steven Gerrard opened the scoring with a
sublime free-kick at the halfway stage of the first half and that proved to be
the difference between the two sides at the break.
Early in the second half
a Gerrard corner was poorly dealt with and Sami Hyypia’s backheel fell to an
unmarked Kuyt who saw the ball fly off his shin and into the net for the 2nd
goal. Torres then had several chances to
increase the lead yet seemed to suffer from a surprising fit of profligacy and
then just after the hour Gerrard’s surging run from midfield saw him exchange
passes with Babel before he gave the Dutch substitute the opportunity to
confirm the 3pts as he made it 3-0 to the visitors.
A black cloud hung above
Newcastle around this time and goalkeeper Shay Given declared it had been one
of his worst afternoons on Tyneside, adding “I’ve been here 10 years but that
performance was right down there with the worst of them. Confidence is a bit low, we are all a bit
shell-shocked.”
Allardyce didn’t last the
season on Tyneside as Newcastle finished in 12th. Liverpool secured Champions League football
by finishing 4th.
28th December
2008
NEWCASTLE (0) 1 (Edgar 45)
LIVERPOOL (2) 5 (Gerrard
31, 66, Hyypia 36,
Babel 50, Alonso pen 76)
NEWCASTLE: Given; Edgar, Taylor, Coloccini, Gutierrez; N’Zogbia,
Guthrie, Butt (Geremi), Enrique (Ameobi); Duff, Owen (Lua Lua)
LIVERPOOL: Reina; Agger, Hyypiam Carragher, Insua; Benayoun
(Alonso), Gerrard (N’Gog), Mascherano, Lucas; Kuyt (Skrtel), Babel
The Christmas period 2008
and Liverpool were top of the league 2pts ahead of Chelsea and had lost just
once all season and were unbeaten in their last 8. Newcastle had recovered from a poor start of
losing 4 of their first 6 matches and were unbeaten in 6 games at home. Liverpool were playing some of their best
football during this period and were in confident mood. There was a fluidity and rhythm to their
passing and movement.
They took the lead after
half an hour during one such move.
Carragher started it on the right wing, playing the ball inside for
Mascherano. This was the cue for
Benayoun to make his run, taking him into the area where Mascherano found him
with a perfectly weighted pass. Three
Newcastle defenders ran to the 6-yard box to anticipate a square pass, instead
Benayoun pulled it back where Gerrard was unmarked on the penalty spot and he
finished beautifully into the top right hand corner. The move was incisive and simple in its
construction yet the home side seemed powerless to stop it.
It was Gerrard’s 7th
of the season and the mood in the ground was dampened further when Hyypia
doubled the lead 6 minutes later. Liverpool
had been dominant in the half thus far and Shay Given had been called upon to
make many good saves to keep the home side within touching distance, but he
could do little about the poor protection his defenders were giving him. Gerrard’s corner was met perfectly by
Hyypia’s head in a move more in keeping with the training ground than a
competition Premier League encounter.
Then as the first half moved into stoppage time, suddenly there was
something for the Toon to cheer as David Edgar rose to get his head first to a
corner and make it 1-2.
But if the home fans were
hoping that goal would see a rejuvenated side in the second half, their hopes
were dashed from another set-piece. Gerrard
again took a corner on the right and Hyypia moved to the near post to meet it
but let it go, where it hit Lucas on the shoulder and bounced towards the
goal. Several Newcastle defenders
stopped rather than wait for the whistle, and Babel with his back to the goal,
was given far too much time to turn and stab the ball into the net despite
being surrounded by three defenders and the keeper. Liverpool had restored their 2-goal advantage
and then gradually played the home team out of the game. Midway through the second half Liverpool
knocked the ball around in their own half inviting Newcastle to push up, played
it back to Reina where his ball forward was nodded on by Lucas to Gerrard on
the halfway line. Gerrard played it back
to Lucas and turned and ran whereupon Lucas found him with an inch-perfect pass
beyond the defender and Gerrard’s pace took him clear. As Given came out Gerrard deftly chipped the
ball over the keeper’s left shoulder for his 2nd and Liverpool’s 4th
of the game. Liverpool’s ability to
manipulate the home side around the pitch was proving the crucial difference.
Newcastle were managed by
Joe Kinnear and there was a dismal feeling around St. James’ Park, and their
misery was complete when Edgar tripped N’Gog in the box and Xabi Alonso
converted the spot-kick for a 5-1 win.
Liverpool came close to winning their 19th league title when
pipped at the post by Manchester United.
For Newcastle this game was synonymous with the rest of their season as
they ended up relegated to the Championship.
27th April 2013
NEWCASTLE (0) 0
LIVERPOOL (2) 6 (Agger 3, Henderson 17, 76,
Sturridge 54, 60, Borini 74)
NEWCASTLE: Elliot; Debuchy, Taylor, Mapou, Haidara; Sissoko, Tiote
(Anita), Cabaye, Perch (Ben Arfa); Gutierrez (Gouffran), Cisse
LIVERPOOL: Reina; Johnson, Carragher, Agger, Enrique; Gerrard
(Borini), Lucas; Downing, Henderson, Coutinho (Suso); Sturridge (Shelvey)
The build-up to this game
was all about one man who wouldn’t be playing.
The week before was the Luis Suarez biting incident and the press had
been full of how long his ban was going to be.
By the end of the week it was confirmed he wouldn’t be playing in the next
10 games for Liverpool and speculation was rife as to how they would, or could,
do without him.
Liverpool sat in 7th
still 5pts behind the team above them, Everton.
Newcastle were perilously close to the drop zone, having impressed many
the season before. Liverpool had only
won 1 of their last 5 in the league yet they were clearly determined from the
off. Liverpool were pressing and had won
successive corners which the home side struggled to defend against. Downing had played a ball in to try and find
Agger, but it had been headed away back to him, when he floated it back the
whole defence pushed up leaving Agger with a free header and he put the
visitors in front. 17 minutes in and a clearance
from Reina found Sturridge just inside the Newcastle half, who laid it off to
Coutinho and both he and Henderson bombed forward. Coutinho played a beautiful little pass with
the outside of his right foot to Sturridge who’d sprinted ahead of his
marker. As Elliot came out Sturridge
eased the ball to his left where Henderson was free to pass the ball into the
empty net for a 2-0 lead.
Liverpool were rampant as
Sturridge seemed to revel in his main striker role. Newcastle should’ve got a goal back just
before half-time when James Perch somehow headed wide of the target when it was
harder to miss. There was a certain
symmetry for the man who’d got Pepe Reina sent off during Liverpool’s last
visit. 2-1 to the visitors at half-time
but things just got worse for Newcastle in the second period.
When Liverpool signed
Philippe Coutinho from Inter there were concerns over whether he’d be able to
handle himself in the hustle and bustle of Premier League football. Any doubts were completely blown away as he
eased Ben Arfa off the ball on the halfway line and then jinked his way
forward, twisting, turning and waiting for the right moment to find Sturridge,
who’d once again lost his marker.
Sturridge took one touch and fired the ball into the roof of the net for
a 3-0 lead. The pass from Coutinho was worth
the entrance fee alone. Liverpool were
beginning to find this all too easy and were able to win the ball back as if it
was their right. After one particular
instance, Steven Gerrard had enough time to pick his moment and place the ball
over the defence for Henderson to run clear and then return the favour for
Sturridge to pass the ball into the empty net.
Still a third of the game left and Liverpool were now 4-0 up.
Into the last quarter of
an hour and Rodgers brought Borini on for Gerrard, who was substituted for the
first time in the season, and Liverpool attacked again with Coutinho and
Henderson both influential. Downing
twisted the full-back on the right wing before pulling it back where Borini
greeted the game with his first touch which ended up in the back of the
net. Two minutes later Coutinho was
chopped down on the left wing, and it was Henderson who took the kick and
curled it past everyone into the far corner to complete the rout. Many of the home fans had started leaving
after the 4th goal and there was a complete feeling of surrender
around St. James’ Park, but for Liverpool they had answered the Suarez question
emphatically with a thumping win.
Neither club changed the positions from the final three matches of the
season.
HEAD TO HEAD at St. James’ Park
Matches: 78
Liverpool win: 24
Newcastle win: 31
Draws: 23
Liverpool goals: 99
Newcastle goals: 113
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