Newcastle United put on a dismal performance in the derby at the Stadium of Light, with Sunderland easily claiming the bragging rights by showing more determination. Neither team managed to break the deadlock in the first half, with Dan Ballard’s header towards the end of the half being the closest either side came to scoring an opener in the initial 45 minutes. Newcastle suffered a significant setback when Dan Burn was substituted after losing out in a challenge with Nordi Mukiele.
However, disaster struck just 63 seconds into the second half when Newcastle failed to clear their lines and Mukiele’s cross was whipped into the box. Instead of finding a red and white player, it landed for Nick Woltemade who flicked it past his own goalkeeper, giving Sunderland a valuable lead.
Here’s how the Newcastle players fared on Wearside…
Aaron Ramsdale 6
One of the few to come away with any real credit, making a couple of saves.
Tino Livramento 5
Had plenty of the ball with 58 touches but didn’t do much with it.
Malick Thiaw 6
A better performance than against Leverkusen, but few others around him stepped up.
Dan Burn 6
Fought hard before being taken off following Nordi Mukiele’s tough challenge.
Lewis Hall 5
Started reasonably well but faded. Couldn’t find any solutions down the left.
Lewis Miley 5
Struggled in the intense midfield battle.
Bruno Guimaraes 6
Showed some grit and had a couple of chances.
Sandro Tonali 4
His performance continues to deteriorate. He never seemed engaged in this match.
Substituted shortly after receiving a yellow card.
Anthony Elanga 3
Managed just one cross and appeared to be a player lacking inspiration. The plan was for him to come in as the fresh talent following a midweek rest.
Anthony Gordon 3
Failed to deliver a cross or take a shot. His poor first half performance put him at risk of being substituted, which happened before the 60-minute mark.
Was Woltemade’s early failure to pass the turning point of his afternoon?
He looked livid and never seemed to recover from it.
Nick Woltemade 5
Received no service during the match. The unfortunate scorer of an own goal.
His bad day began when he failed to pass to Gordon early on.
Subs
Fabian Schar 6 (for Burn 41)
Performed adequately. But adequate is not enough on derby day.
Harvey Barnes 3 (for Gordon 58)
Made no impact.
Joe Willock 3 (Tonali 58)
Failed to deliver.
Jacob Murphy 6 (for Elanga 58)
At least managed to contribute something from the right.
Yoane Wissa 5 (for Woltemade 75)
Did not appear fit.