Newcastle United and Tottenham played out a dramatic 2-2 draw at St. James’ Park on Tuesday night, with a penalty decision proving to be the major talking point.
A drab first half made way for a four-goal thriller in the second 45 on Tyneside tonight, with the points shared between Newcastle United and Spurs.
Late HEARTBREAK 😫 Who was your Newcastle MOTM against Tottenham?👏🏻
Eddie Howe’s men thought they had snatched the win with a late penalty that was dispatched by Anthony Gordon. On balance, Newcastle’s performance probably deserved the three points, too.
But, did the Geordies deserve their penalty? Or was Cristian Romero’s late leveller a case of justice served for the Lilywhites?
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Newcastle United fortunate to get penalty
The penalty was given for a holding offence, with Tottenham’s Rodrigo Bentancur adjudged to have held sustained contact with Dan Burn before pulling him down. He also wasn’t looking at the ball, which may have been enough for referee Tom Bramall to give the decision after an on-field review.
Geordie Boot Boys spoke exclusively to Mark Clattenburg about the incident, and the former Premier League referee insisted Newcastle were given a penalty that never should have been.
He said: “Newcastle can find themselves very lucky to be awarded a penalty kick after Bentancur was adjudged to have fouled Burn after a corner was played inside the penalty area. Both players are holding each other while fighting for the ball and the on-field decision to play on was accepted.
“For the VAR to interfere, it must be a clear error from the referee and I don’t believe it was. Each week we are seeing inconsistencies with VAR and it’s creating frustration.”
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Points dropped, but a key moment for Anthony Gordon
The penalty may not have won Newcastle the game in the end, but it was still a huge moment for Anthony Gordon.
He was left out of the Newcastle starting XI again after a tough week, but he came on, impacted the game, and showed confidence to take the penalty and slot it away.
Bitter Rio Ferdinand claims Newcastle got away with one vs Tottenham, is he right?🤔
That was Gordon’s first Premier League goal since January. Now, he has to make sure we don’t wait long for his next goal, and that he carries this momentum into the next game.
Gordon has slipped down the pecking order of late, but this performance and that goal can change everything.
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