Martin Dubravka’s Newcastle United return did not go to plan on Saturday.
He was back at St James’ Park with his new club Burnley, but could not bring any points back to Lancashire. Newcastle United beat Burnley 2-1, despite doing their best to throw away victory in stoppage time.
It was an emotional 90 minutes for Martin Dubravka, who will not look back fondly on what happened in the first half. Bruno Guimaraes scored directly from a corner, with Dubravka not really covering himself in glory.
Did Bruno Guimaraes mean to score from a corner?! Or are you blaming Martin Dubravka 😂
The first Newcastle United player to ever score a Premier League goal directly from a corner 😎
Martin Dubravka’s message after Newcastle United return
However, the 36-year-old will look back fondly on what happened in the second half. Newcastle United fans serenaded Dubravka, showing their appreciation for a player who gave his all during his time on Tyneside.
Dubravka responded at the time by applauding the Toon Army, and now he has taken to social media to give a direct message to the Newcastle United supporters.
The Slovakian goalkeeper has posted photos of Saturday’s game on his official Instagram account, as well as a message for the Toon fans that gave him such a great welcome back to Tyneside.
He wrote: “Thank you for nice reception.”
Dubravka certainly deserved that moment in front of the Newcastle United fans, having given so much for the club before not getting the chance to properly say goodbye.
Eddie Howe’s decision angered Martin Dubravka
The former Toon stopper endured a difficult end to his Newcastle United career.
It started when he lost his place in the starting XI to Nick Pope, which resulted in him going out on loan to Manchester United.
Upon returning to St James’ Park, Dubravka did get the chance to play through injury to Pope. He featured during the 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons, but would lose his place in the side on both occasions when Pope returned to full fitness.
Who is the one player you were FURIOUS with Newcastle United for selling? Go back as far as you want!
That was particularly frustrating for Dubravka last season, having been convinced to stay at the club by Eddie Howe despite having the chance to join Al-Shabab in Saudi Arabia.
He would instead sign a new contract at St James’ Park, before losing his place in the Newcastle United starting XI.
“Everything was smooth and we signed the deal,” Dubravka told the Times earlier this month.
“It was official on the Thursday, and then on the Saturday Eddie dropped me. I didn’t expect that because I just signed a new deal with Newcastle instead of one which would completely secure my life in Saudi Arabia. I was shocked.
“We had a conversation after the game, and it was not a nice conversation.”