Newcastle United produced a spirited comeback to earn a fighting 2-2 draw against Liverpool at Anfield overnight.
The Reds started the better and only needed two minutes to find the breakthrough, after Daniel Sturridge created some space inside the penalty area and netted a shot into the far corner. They doubled their lead on the half-hour mark courtesy of a superb strike from Adam Lallana, who sensationally guided his striker from the edge of the box into the top corner.
The second-half was a different game, however, and Newcastle halved the deficit three minutes after the restart when a cross from Vurnon Anita was met by Papiss Cisse, who headed past Simon Mignolet.
The Magpies soon had more reason to celebrate, after Jack Colback secured his side an equaliser with 25 minutes to play. Dejan Lovren failed to deal with a cross from Andros Townsend and Colback was on hand to level the score with the aid of a deflection.
There were no more clear cut chances, and Rafa Benetiz’s men held on for what could be a valuable point.
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Rafa will have hero status if he keeps the Toon up
Trailing by two goals at the break and looking all but certain to lose, Rafa Benitez rallied his troops together and plotted a way back into this match. Anyone connected to Liverpool will be aware of just how influential a halftime address from the Spaniard can be (Istanbul 2005), and 11 years later, he once again somehow got his team something out of nothing. His impact on the squad has been there for all to see in the last three games, and it makes one wonder what Newcastle’s situation would be like if they approached the 56-year-old earlier in January after he was dismissed from Real Madrid. Either way, if he keeps the Geordies up, he will be revered on Tyneside.
Did Liverpool prematurely have one eye on Europe?
Despite being in the final four of the Europa League, Jurgen Klopp has been stressing all week that domestic issues are still at the forefront of the team’s mind. Even if this is the case, surely comfortably leading a struggling Newcastle side 2-0 at the break had the players subconsciously thinking that the job was done, and therefore attention had already turned to their midweek tie against Villarreal in Spain. Sloppy defending, which allowed Newcastle to get back into the match, could be a cause for concern given they will be facing stronger opposition, but nonetheless the fans will be hoping that their lethargic second-half display was a result of the players simply putting the cue in the rack in preparation for Thursday.
The fight for survival is on
Prior to facing Swansea last weekend, Newcastle looked to be as good as gone. Since then, they have comfortably dispatched the Swans at home, taken a draw against Manchester City in a match they arguably deserved to win, and now they have come from behind to earn a fighting draw away at Anfield. Five points from a possible nine has Newcastle within a point of safety, although Sunderland and Norwich do have games in hand. The fighting spirit that has been shown in these last outings needs to continue in their final three matches, and with matches against Crystal Palace (home) relegated Aston Villa (away) and Tottenham Hotspur (home) still to come, there is belief that the Geordies can stay up after looking doomed only one week ago.
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