Newcastle United manager Matthias Jaissle was clearly unhappy after his side were denied what appeared to be a famous opening-day victory over Liverpool, with a controversial 99th-minute penalty allowing Dominik Szoboszlai to rescue a 2-2 draw for the visitors.
The Magpies had taken the lead through Anthony Elanga after just five minutes before Liverpool responded through Cody Gakpo in the second half. Newcastle immediately regained the advantage through Joe Willock, putting Jaissle’s side on course for all three points.
However, the game took a dramatic turn in stoppage time when Stuart Attwell awarded Liverpool a penalty after Victor Munoz went down under a challenge from Lewis Hall. Szoboszlai stepped up and converted from the spot, leaving Newcastle with only a point despite their strong performance.
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville subsequently weighed in on Liverpool’s performance, piling pressure on the Reds’ big-money stars Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz.
Neville insisted Liverpool were “nowhere near a title-winning team” and argued that Isak and Wirtz now need to start delivering after their expensive moves to Anfield.
“You can’t say Liverpool didn’t deserve a point out of the game because they created a lot of chances,” Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast.
“I think Liverpool will be happy with the point and the way the game ended but deep down, when you’re measuring yourself against the teams they’ve had recently that have won titles, I think they’ll be thinking ‘we’ve got a lot of work to do’. They’re nowhere near a title-winning team, I don’t think.”
Neville then turned his attention to Isak and Wirtz.
“The other big thing for Liverpool is they’ve got Isak and Wirtz who are going to have to start playing soon. We’ve been kind on them two.
“They need to start delivering and they need to improve. There were some positives for Liverpool but there’s a big question over Isak and Wirtz still, those two need to deliver.”
However, Jaissle did not agree with the sentiment surrounding the match and was particularly critical of the late penalty that ultimately prevented Newcastle from taking all three points.
The Newcastle boss described the decision as “really soft”, arguing that Lewis Hall could not simply disappear from the pitch when challenging for the ball.
“For me, it was no penalty – it was a really soft one. If you give that, we will see many, many penalties,” Jaissle said.
“I don’t think that Lewis can do anything else, he cannot just disappear on the field! It’s a really soft penalty. If you give these penalties then you have to give a lot in this season and I’m not sure if that’s good for football.”
The late decision overshadowed what had otherwise been an impressive start to Jaissle’s reign at Newcastle, with his side twice taking the lead against the reigning champions before ultimately being forced to settle for a draw.
Liverpool, meanwhile, remain active in the transfer market and could yet add another major attacking player before the window closes. The Reds continue to be linked with Paris Saint-Germain forward Bradley Barcola, although an agreement does not currently appear imminent.