Newcastle United Player Ratings vs Brighton & Hove Albion: 9/10 Pope spectacular; Botman gets 7 on debut

Newcastle United held out to snatch a 0-0 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion despite a nervy second half at the Amex Stadium.

Newcastle United withstood waves of attacks in an anxious second half to secure a goalless draw against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Saturday. It was a point that the Magpies will happily take home to Tyneside after surviving a few nervy moments in the game, with two goal-line clearances on show.

Both teams came into the contest as the form sides, and it was reflected in the first quarter of the game with some entertaining end-to-end football. However, it was always going to be one of those tightly-congested, scrappy classic Newcastle versus Brighton draws from their Championship days.

As the game wore down, Brighton became the better team, controlling possession and threatening from the flanks – phases which would carry on throughout the game.

Newcastle threatened on the counter and the visitors almost drew first blood against the run of play when Callum Wilson’s wonderful effort was disallowed for a high boot. It was one of those goals that would have stood if the referee had not blown his whistle to stop the play and it had gone to VAR.

That was the only clear-cut chance that Eddie Howe’s men created in the first half, with Brighton having the better share of opportunities. The Seagulls came incredibly close to taking the lead in the first half when Solly March’s goal-bound attempt was hacked off the line by Kieran Trippier.

The hosts continued to hog the ball after the break but were aided by Newcastle dropping deeper, as their 4-3-3 was forced into a 5-3-2 which didn’t break up the opponent’s play in possession nearly enough. Brighton peppered Nick Pope’s goal, but Newcastle weathered the squall of pressure to hang on for a point thanks to some excellent goalkeeping and Fabian Schar making a crucial clearance late in the game.

Pascal Gross still had the time to miss an absolute sitter when set up cleanly by substitute Kaoru Mitoma as both sides settled for a share of the spoils.

Nick Pope: 9/10

Pope was easily Newcastle’s Man of the Match in this game as he pulled off no less than five vital saves, with four coming from inside the box to earn his side a point. He stood in front of the Magpies’ goal like a wall, and just would not let anyone past him on the day.

March tested him twice from close range, but he successfully denied a certain goal, first by getting a glove on a well-struck effort prior to Trippier’s clearance, and then with another fantastic stop with an extended leg when called upon the second time. Also, he stepped off his line quickly to snuff off any potential runs in behind.

Kieran Trippier: 6/10

Keeping aside a crucial clearance off the line to stop March from scoring in the first half, the Newcastle skipper uncharacteristically had a rough outing as he was regularly beaten in one-on-one’s against Trossard and then by substitute Mitoma, whose pace had the England international on his toes. While his defensive work rate was on display, he was very erratic in possession, losing the ball a match-high 20 times and completing only one cross and one long ball.

Fabian Schar: 7/10

Schar put in a solid defensive shift to keep Brighton’s forwards at bay and made a whopping eight clearances. Experienced defending throughout. All part of a tidy display from the Swiss defender, and while he did not score a worldie here like the other day, his spectacular goal-line clearance with ten minutes remaining on the clock saved the day for the Magpies.

Sven Botman: 7/10

While it was far from a spectacular debut from Newcastle’s summer recruit, he had a solid game to build on as he did not look out of place and was precise in possession. Some raking passes with the left foot, as Newcastle tried to play out from the back. To be fair, Botman never got a free hand to carry out defensive actions or play his passes with Burn occupying and mopping up in his area.

Dan Burn: 8/10

Burn was forced to play at left-back in the absence of Matt Targett, a position he was quite frequently utilised in at Brighton but for the first time at Newcastle. The 6ft7in colossus more than stood his ground against his former club despite facing mobile and speedy attackers. He made a lot of vital interventions, with a stunning tackle to deny Danny Welbeck from taking a shot inside the six-yard box being the pick of the bunch.

Headed away time after time and finished with two tackles, two interceptions and six clearances. Interestingly, he was never dribbled past once, which is a commendable job taking into account his stature.

Joe Willock: 6/10

Willock put in plenty of notable defensive work but he was less effective than he was in last weekend’s victory over Nottingham Forest. He was chasing shadows for the majority of the contest and struggled to cope with Brighton’s midfield powerhouse Moises Caicedo. Fizzled out in the second half before being rightly replaced. A fairly anonymous outing.

Bruno Guimaraes: 6.5/10

The Seagulls were well prepared to shut down Guimaraes after a stellar display against Forest last time out. Normally Newcastle’s passing hub, the Brazilian struggled to cope with Brighton’s intensity, and while his work ethic was there, he could not provide the spark from midfield that was needed. He performed okay but was not quite at his very best. Will have better games.

Joelinton: 6.5/10

Joelinton showed some real aggression and refused to be beaten in a brawl or a midfield battle. However, he was a bit lethargic and sloppy in possession at times as he failed to dominate the opposition’s midfield as he typically does. Booked for engaging in a wrestling match with March. And while he won that one comfortably, it was yet another Brazilian off-colour on the day.

Miguel Almiron: 7/10

As ever, Almiron made several lung-busting forward and recovery runs down the right flank but was unable to stretch Brighton’s backline enough. He looked lively, full of running, but because many around him had an off day, he could not construct those triangles of intricate passes. While he lacked the cutting edge, he was at least threatening. Put in defensive graft late on.

Callum Wilson: 6.5/10

Wilson had another quiet game, but on another day, despite feeding off scraps for most of the game, he could have come away with a brace. His predatory instincts and finishing skills are of another level, as he juggled the ball over two defenders before putting the ball into the back of the net, but the goal was ruled out for a high boot.

Drifted towards the right due to being well-marshalled by Lewis Dunk, then slid in a teasing cross into the box, laying on the plate, but there were no Newcastle shirts to tap it in.

Allan Saint-Maximin: 6/10

Work rate can’t be faulted, but Saint-Maximin had a frustrating afternoon, summed up by a booking for a clear dive. He got into some good areas, but just couldn’t find a teammate in and around the box, while he lacked decision-making at crucial moments and ended up losing possession. Still, there were some promising plays where he looked dangerous, and put in some handsome crosses into the box.

SUBSTITUTES

Sean Longstaff: N/A

Like Willock, couldn’t keep the ball whenever Brighton swarmed. Pretty anonymous cameo but still provided fresh legs to help his side see out a draw.

Jacob Murphy: N/A

The English winger did not feature much but showed some flashes of his searing pace.

Chris Wood: N/A

Did not play enough to warrant a rating.