Newcastle United beat Southampton 1-0 with 10 men in their Premier League season opener at St James’ Park - here’s how the players fared.
The Magpies started the new season against the newly-promoted Saints with Bruno Guimaraes as captain and Tino Livramento given the nod at right-back over Kieran Trippier.
Southampton had the ball in the net after 10 minutes through Jack Stephens but the goal was quickly disallowed for an offside against the visiting captain.
Newcastle were dealt a major blow after 30 minutes as Fabian Schar was shown a straight red card for violent conduct after clashing with Ben Brereton-Diaz. A VAR check didn’t overturn Craig Pawson’s on-field decision.
Despite their disadvantage, Newcastle took the lead just before half-time as Joelinton stroked the ball in at the Gallowgate End.
Southampton pushed for an equaliser in the second half with Lewis Hall clearing Adam Armstrong’s effort off the line.
But Newcastle were able to hang on with a clean sheet and secure three points.
Here are the Newcastle United player ratings from the match...
9. Jacob Murphy - 5
Kept quiet by Kyle Walker-Peters before being sacrificed as a result of Schar's red card. | Getty Images
10. Alexander Isak - 7
Wasn't able to pose any real threat with Newcastle a man down other than his good interception and assist for Joelinton. Had a couple of neat touches and promising runs without getting close to scoring. Still a good shift in the circumstances. | Getty Images
11. Anthony Gordon - 5
Caught on the ball which started a dangerous Southampton attack. Looked off the pace having only played 45 minutes of pre-season. | Getty Images
12. Emil Krafth - 7
On for Murphy 30: Back in at centre-back following Schar's red card and helped the side regain some composure. | Getty Images