The heavy victory over Leicester City on Saturday was an important one from a Newcastle United perspective as they wrapped up a first victory since the win at Nottingham Forest
However, despite the free-flowing attacking football, there was one decision that was flagged up by the Match of the Day studio. At 1-0, captain Bruno Guimaraes was involved in two incidents that could have led to an early bath.
The Brazilian thought he was upended in the penalty area and was after a spot kick for his side, but referee pointed for a Leicester free-kick without being shown a card.. Moments later, Guimaraes was booked for a strong challenge on Stephy Mavididi – starting the argument that the skipper should have received his marching orders.
In the second, he popped up with his first goal of the campaign to put the home side two-goals up. Ashley Williams, formerly of Everton and Swansea City, believes the midfielder was lucky to escape without receiving two yellow cards
“He was very lucky because, for me, he should have got two yellows,” Williams said. “This is a dive, he’s gone down early. I’m not sure why he doesn’t get booked for that, unless the ref is saying that maybe it’s handball. I’m not sure but he didn’t pick up a yellow card there.
“Now he does get a yellow card for this tackle, a minute later. It’s a little bit nasty. He’s gone over the top of the ball and then he’s off. He actually pops up with a goal not so long after that. I do think that he’s a very lucky boy today, Bruno Guimaraes.”
Host Gary Lineker joked that the scoreline might have only been two or three-nil had Guimaraes seen red. However, after Williams’ explanation, he joked: “All in all, Leicester deserved to win then.”
Ex-Arsenal and England winger Theo Walcott was thoroughly impressed with Newcastle’s attacking intent. He picked out the performances of Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon and Jacobs Murphy in particular.
Walcott noted the harmony with the attacking balance of Eddie Howe’s side. The 35-year-old described the entire performance as what he likes to see from a Newcastle United side.
“They were very good because I felt the whole balance of the team worked,” Walcott stated. “There has always been a bit of debate about where Anthony Gordon plays, [Harvey] Barnes, they’ve got all of these players. We saw a better Gordon today on the left-hand side, where he is more comfortable, where he can enjoy himself.
“Isak had willing runners with him who could keep up with his pace as well. The thing about Isak is that he can not just hold up the ball but he can also make the runs. The intent was there from start to finish.
“You look at Murphy as well. He is a player that I like because, the thing about Murphy, he always asked questions of defenders. He never gives you breathing space. [For the first goal], it was a very tidy finish from Murphy, very composed.
“Murphy, a different kind of player on this side, gets his luck. The bodies and the excitement [as Newcastle attack], it’s like Eddie Howe said, ‘I’m going to give you freedom. When you get into that final third, do your thing’. The balance on that right-hand side was a lot more a Newcastle side that I want to see with a better performance against a lesser team shall we say.”
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