EPL 2017/18, Newcastle 1-1 Liverpool: Player Ratings

Liverpool dropped two more points as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Newcastle. Philippe Coutinho's long-range strike gave the visitors at St James' Park the lead shortly before the half-hour mark, before Joselu equalised with a somewhat fortuitous goal.

Liverpool huffed and puffed in the second half but were unable to find a winner, as Newcastle stood firm to earn an impressive point.

Here are the player ratings from the final game of the Premier League weekend.

Newcastle

Rob Elliot 7/10

Despite the fact Liverpool dominated possession and had 17 shots in total, Elliot only had two saves to make. The Newcastle goalkeeper could perhaps have got closer to Philippe Coutinho’s strike.

DeAndre Yedlin 7/10

Yedlin’s speed rescued Newcastle in the first half, when he prevented Mohamed Salah running through on goal. The right-back worked hard throughout.

Ciaran Clark 7/10

Clark almost cost his team with a sliced clearance in the second half, but he still had a good game. The former Aston Villa man is strong in the air and the tackle.

Jamaal Lascelles 8/10

Lascelles marshalled the Newcastle backline well and kept Daniel Sturridge quiet for the most part. No-one made more interceptions than the centre-half’s three.

Javier Manquillo 7/10

This was not a flashy display from Manquillo, but his defensive work was impressive. He was occasionally beaten for pace by Mohamed Salah, but his positioning was generally good.

Jonjo Shelvey 9/10

Shelvey’s long-range passing is superb, as he showed with a tremendous through-ball to Joselu for the equaliser. Equally significantly, he kept a cool head as Newcastle held out for a point.

Mikel Merino 8/10

Merino, a stabilising presence at the base of midfield, made more tackles (five) than anyone else on the pitch. He looked to move the ball forward whenever possible and was rarely caught out of position.

Matt Ritchie 8/10

Ritchie’s delivery from wide areas is consistently excellent, but his standout attributes in this game were his defensive diligence and awareness of danger.

Ayoze Perez 7/10

Perez provides a vital link between midfield and attack and got himself into some dangerous positions between the lines. The Spaniard is technically gifted and will be important to the Magpies this term.

Christian Atsu 6/10

Atsu did not pose much of an attacking threat against Liverpool, but he deserves credit for working hard and tracking back when required.

Joselu 6/10

Joselu worked hard at up front, although he almost fluffed his lines by allowing Joel Matip to get back and make a tackle when he was played through on goal.

Newcastle United v Liverpool - Premier League

Substitutes

Dwight Gayle – 6/10

The striker was introduced with 12 minutes left on the clock, Gayle worked hard for his team by running the channels and providing an outlet.

Isaac Hayden – 7/10

Hayden helped to shore up the midfield in the closing stages as Newcastle held on for a point.

Mo Diame – N/A

The midfielder was only brought on in second-half stoppage time.

Liverpool

Simon Mignolet 6/10

Mignolet did not have a great deal to do on Sunday, although he at least managed to avoid making any major blunders. The Belgian was not to blame for Joselu’s leveller.

Joe Gomez 6/10

Gomez succeeded in keeping Christian Atsu relatively quiet, but he did not offer the type of attacking threat required from full-backs facing opponents who sit deep.

Joel Matip 6/10

Matip was a little unfortunate that his tackle rebounded off Joselu and rolled into the net, but he and Dejan Lovren did not exactly cover themselves in glory beforehand.

Dejan Lovren 5/10

As well as being caught out for the Magpies’ goal, Lovren missed an excellent chance to score at the other end. Doubts remain about whether he is good enough for Liverpool.

Alberto Moreno 5/10

Moreno has been in decent form of late, but this was one of his better showings of the season. The Spaniard did not offer enough going forward and was also suspect defensively.

Philippe Coutinho 7/10

Coutinho has a knack for scoring stunning long-range strikes, and his effort on Sunday was just another example of his fantastic accuracy from outside the box. Apart from that, though, the Brazilian was pretty quiet.

Georginio Wijnaldum 4/10

This was not the best of performances from Wijnaldum against his former club. The midfielder allowed Jonjo Shelvey far too much time in the build-up to Newcastle’s equaliser, while his passing was sloppy.

Jordan Henderson 6/10

Henderson’s distribution was a little safe on Sunday, and he probably could have done more to get his team going in the second half.

Mohamed Salah 5/10

Salah has scored five goals and provided one assist in a Liverpool shirt, yet he has also been extremely wasteful. The Egyptian blazed over from an excellent position in the second half and made poor decisions on the ball at times.

Daniel Sturridge 4/10

Sturridge was also profligate in front of goal, spurning a one-on-one after the interval. His link-up play was also poor and it was no surprise to see him substituted as the Reds chased a winner.

Sadio Mane – 5/10

The Senegal international struggled to get into the game at St James’ Park. Both of his shots were off target and he looked lost for ideas in the final third.

Substitutes

Roberto Firmino – 6/10

The Brazilian replaced Sturridge and tried to combine with his team-mates, but did not get on the ball very often.

Dominic Solanke – 6/10

Solanke worked hard and showed his pace and strength during his time on the pitch, but he was unable to get Liverpool over the line.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – N/A

The ex-Arsenal man entered the fray late on and went close with a header.