Newcastle United 3-3 Man City (Almiron 38′, Wilson 39′, Trippier 54′; Gundogan 8′, Haaland 61′, Silva 64′)
Allan Saint-Maximin embodied everything that was right with Newcastle and nearly powered the Magpies to a famous victory over the Premier League champions.
Goals from Miguel Almiron, Callum Wilson and Kieran Trippier put Man City 3-1 down with half an hour remaining, before two in four minutes, first from Erling Haaland and then from Bernardo Silva, draw them back level.
Ilkay Gundogan had given City an early lead to puncture a buoyant St James’ Park atmosphere, but beyond the opening 10 minutes Newcastle gave a spirited and energetic performance that may serve as a blueprint for others trying to undo Pep Guardiola.
That said, were it not for the heroics of goalkeeper Nick Pope, their efforts might all have for naught. The England international made seven saves in total, including one fingertip effort from Erling Haaland that should be in the conversation for save of the season.
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Newcastle player ratings
Nick Pope: Could do nothing about the opening goal, but then made several strong saves and came out to smother Haaland just before Newcastle took the lead. Brilliant fingertip save from the No 9 kept them ahead just after the break and was solid under late pressure 9
Kieran Trippier: Full-blooded block on Cancelo’s early cross was important but also found plenty of space going forward and scored a stellar free-kick against the club he played for as a schoolboy. Was perhaps lucky to have his red card chalked off. It was a rash challenge on De Bruyne that was probably an orange 8
Fabian Schar: Should have taken control in the first five minutes to deal with Gundogan’s arrival in the box but few will hold that against him in the context of the result. 7
Sven Botman: Lapses of concentration cost him at crucial moments, particularly for the Silva goal 6
Dan Burn: Was largely untroubled early on as City focused more down their own left-hand side in attack, although failed to track Silva’s run inside for the equaliser. 6
Joe Willock: Jointly responsible for failing to pick up Gundogan early on, and then gave the ball away very cheaply that eventually allowed De Bruyne a one-on-one with the keeper. 5
Bruno Guimaraes: Buzzed all over the Man City midfield like the kind of energetic player that has endeared him to the St James’ Park faithful 7
Joelinton: Important part of the high-energy press and sprinted 7
Miguel Almiron: Blazed over the bar from 10 yards early on but made up for it shortly after though, even if the ball did basically hit him as he fell over for his goal 7
Callum Wilson: Quiet first 40 minutes but came alive when it mattered, twisting Ruben Dias into knots and finishing smartly 7
Allan Saint-Maximin: Typically lively early on and produced a fine cross for the equaliser. City tried to double up on him and even though couldn’t stifle him, and when it broke to him in open field for the second goal, which he assisted, there was genuine panic 9
Subs: Chris Wood (6), Sean Longstaff (5), Jacob Murphy (6), Emil Krafth (6)
Allan Saint-Maximin: We are disappointed because we really want to win that game to show to the world what we are capable of doing. The future is bright for Newcastle. If we keep playing this level, I think we can win a lot of games.
Kieran Trippier: It shows how far we’ve come from January, we’ve taken big steps in a short time.
Man City player ratings
Ederson: Very nearly caught out too high up the pitch before half-time, but little he could do about the goals in reality 6
Kyle Walker: Was tormented by Saint-Maximin throughout and he did look like he was rattled by it, even when given help by team-mates 5
John Stones: Didn’t get close enough to Saint-Maximin in the build-up to Newcastle’s second, then lucky not to have a penalty given against him for a clumsy jumping challenge on Fabian Schar. Was punished for a naive tackle on Saint-Maximin with a yellow card and Trippier’s free-kick 5
Nathan Ake: Offside flag went up but his crucial last-gasp intervention on a Newcastle counter-attack came before it was raised – and perhaps led to the injury that forced him off after just 20 minutes 6
Joao Cancelo: Trippier found plenty of joy at his expense and was asleep at the back post for Newcastle’s equaliser. Curate’s egg of a performance with an assured game on the ball but troubled afternoon off it 7
Kevin De Bruyne: Perhaps should have scored when through one-on-one, but then provided the key pass for City’s second and third goals, the latter particularly deft 7
Rodri: Rarely an obvious candidate for man of the match but as usual provided the metronome to City’s passing rhythm deep in the pitch 7
Ilkay Gundogan: Classic break into the box early on, found a pocket of space between three defenders and finished clinically. Could have had one or two more but for Nick Pope’s brilliance 8
Phil Foden: Failed to square the ball when Haaland surely would have scored, instead drawing an early save from Pope, but was probably City’s best player in the first half. Quieter after the break and a little peripheral, but made it count whenever he got on the ball 7
Erling Haaland: A quiet first half, albeit not as quiet as his eight-touch appearance against Bournemouth. Still finding his place in this City team but alive to the opportunity when it mattered 7
Bernardo Silva: Fine, curved ball created the first goal and then a very canny run allowed him to score the second. Always a pleasure to watch 8
Subs: Ruben Dias (7)
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