Newcastle 1-0 Southampton: Joelinton fires 10-man hosts to hard-fought win after Fabian Schar sees... (original) (raw)

It was backs to the wall but come the end Southampton were banging their heads against that black and white blockade. In losing Fabian Schar to a first-half red card, Newcastle gained so much more. Here was a triumph chiselled by heart and desire and fuelled by an apparent injustice.

Joelinton was the home match-winner, and not just because he scored the game’s only goal in first-half stoppage-time. He defended that lead as if his life depended on it, and because of that his team survived with a victory that seemed unlikely in the extreme after half an hour.

By then, Schar was off after an altercation with Ben Brereton Diaz and Southampton were in the ascendancy. They had been the better team until that point. Newcastle, by comparison, weren’t very good with or without the ball.

There was no opening-day energy to Eddie Howe’s side. Twelve months ago, with new signing Sandro Tonali strutting around the park like a gladiator, Aston Villa were put to the sword in a 5-1 win.

The first 30 minutes here lacked all of that ceremony. It did not feel like a curtain-raiser. If it was being played in the back garden, you might well close the curtains.

Newcastle United beat newly-promoted Southampton 1-0 in their Premier League opener

Joelinton scored Newcastle's first goal of the season just before half-time on Saturday

Newcastle took the lead despite being down to 10 men after Fabian Schar (left) had been sent off in the 28th minute for headbutting Ben Brereton Diaz (right)

Saints striker Brereton Diaz fell to ground dramatically after Schar's act of violent conduct

The red card changed all of that, and it was Newcastle who were the chief beneficiaries.

MATCH FACTS

Newcastle (4-3-3): Pope 7; Livramento 6, Schar 3, Burn 7.5, Hall 6 (Kelly 70, 6); Joelinton 8, Longstaff 7.5, Guimaraes 6.5; Murphy 5 (Krafth 30, 6.5) Gordon 6.5 (Barnes 70, 5.5), Isak 7

Unused subs: Dubravka, Trippier, Targett, Osula, Almiron, Willock

Manager: Eddie Howe 7

Scorers: Joelinton 45

Sent off: Schar

Bookings: Burn, Hall

Southampton (3-4–3): McCarthy 4.5; Harwood-Bellis 6, Bednarek 6 (Amo-Ameyaw 81), Stephens 6; Sugawara 5.5 (Edozie 46, 5), Smallbone 6.5, Downes 6.5, Walker-Peters 5.5 (Alcarez 81); Brereton 6 (Archer 71, 5), Aribo 6 (Dibling 71, 5.5), Armstrong 7

Unused subs: Lumley, Bree, Taylor, Edozie, Wood

Manager: Russell Martin 6

Bookings: Brereton Diaz, Stephens, Harwood-Bellis

Referee: Craig Pawson 6.5

Attendance: 52,196

MOM: Joelinton

Depleted in number but multiplied in spirit, they and their supporters set out to right the supposed wrong of the officials. Craig Pawson was ‘not fit to referee’ they chorused. But while the whistler was cast as the pantomime villain, the real rogue was Schar.

Yes, the red card was as soft as the contact his forehead had made with Brereton Diaz, but it was still a red card. The Swiss defender reacted after a shove in the back by the Saints winger. Brereton Diaz then fell like a sack of spuds when Schar moved his head towards him, but the Newcastle man was the tattie.

‘It felt really harsh on Fabby, but we all know you can’t give the referee the opportunity to give the red card,’ said Howe. ‘It looks like he has been caught by a well-managed situation.’

But from that came noise, aggression and purpose. When Newcastle then led it made little sense and yet perfect sense just the same.

It was their first effort on goal and, for creator Alexander Isak, just his sixth touch.

Not that he was alone in seeing little of the ball, given Southampton had 73 per cent possession. But for all that Russell Martin’s side had been good, their work was undone by something very bad.

Goalkeeper Alex McCarthy attempted to play out from the back and it was a fine pass, straight to the feet of Isak, at least.

He squared for Joelinton and the control and finish, both on his weaker left side, were like that of the master marksman Newcastle thought they were signing for a club record £40million five years ago.

He’s not that player - he never was - but the qualities he does boast in abundance helped see out a thoroughly satisfying win.

Saturday's game was a bad tempered one featuring many yellow cards, as well as the one red

It proved to be a very busy Saturday afternoon for referee Craig Pawson at St James' Park

Newcastle midfielder Joelinton pictured celebrating after scoring his first goal since 2023

Joelinton's goal came moments after Southampton keeper Alex McCarthy had lost possession

Southampton manager Russell Martin pictured gesturing to his team's fans after the match

There was a goal-line clearance by Lewis Hall from Adam Armstrong and the same player, taking aim for the top corner, was denied by an airborne Nick Pope.

New signing watch

Ben Brereton Diaz (Southampton)

He won’t forget his Saints debut, and not for the right reasons.

For while the Chilean played well enough and was cunning in getting Newcastle’s Fabian Schar sent off in the first half, that (play) act only served to motivate the home team and their fans.

Every time he touched the ball a loud chorus of boos rang out, and from that the Newcastle players gained an extra yard. But Brereton Diaz at least showed why he can be an important player, showing energy and aggression from the left wing.

Armstrong’s cross was then deflected into the side-netting when the smart money looked to be on it creeping inside the post.

Joelinton was the gladiator this time and, alongside him in midfield, Geordie Sean Longstaff acted out the frustration of his brethren in the stands by snapping through yellow jerseys yet always avoiding a yellow card.

Dan Burn, another local, played the role of site foreman in front of the aforementioned wall. He also waited to confront Brereton Diaz in the tunnel at half-time.

‘In a strange way, the red card was a turning point negatively in terms of control, but a turning point in terms of getting the crowd in the game,’ said Howe.

‘They felt an injustice. Without that support it’s probably a different result.’

Newcastle still had as many red cards as shots on target by the time Pawson - in his first popular act of the game - sounded for full-time.

But what cannot be measured in numbers is the depth of the fortitude they found in the final hour. Saying that, three points is as good a measure as any.