Liverpool’s bid for a top-four finish in the English Premier League received a significant boost as they secured a 2-0 win over 10-man Newcastle United on Saturday.
The game started with a moment of silence held in honor of former Newcastle forward Christian Atsu, who passed away at the age of 31 in the earthquake in Turkey.
The result marked the end of Newcastle’s 17-game unbeaten streak in the league and handed them just their second loss of the season, both against Liverpool. The visitors were already two goals up by the time Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope was sent off in the 22nd minute for handling the ball outside the area, which made the rest of the game a matter of seeing things out for Liverpool.
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Uruguayan forward Darwin Nunez opened the scoring in the 10th minute, while Mohamed Salah doubled the lead with a delicate chip seven minutes later.
Matters only got worse for Newcastle when Pope rushed out to meet a kick up the field by Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker and ended up handling the ball with his hand, earning himself a red card.
Despite being a man down, Newcastle tried to make a comeback with Allan Saint-Maximin forcing a good save from Alisson in the 31st minute. However, Liverpool continued to dominate and missed several chances to increase their lead in the second half.
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The victory cut the gap to fourth-placed Newcastle to six points for Liverpool, who also have a game in hand. The visitors passed their way through the Newcastle defense in the 75th minute to give Andy Robertson a chance, but he opted to square the ball back toward Salah, whose pass was off-target.
Salah tried to set up Trent Alexander-Arnold after a quick counter in the 80th minute, but his pass was deflected for a corner.
Newcastle’s best chance to get back in the game came when Anthony Gordon led a counterattack and fed Callum Wilson, but his low shot was saved by Alisson.