Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund LIVE: Champions League result and reaction after Anthony Gordon hits bar
Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund: Eddie Howe’s side hit the bar twice but suffered the first defeat of their Champions League return
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Your support makes all the difference.Felix Nmecha dented Newcastle United’s Champions League charge as Borussia Dortmund kick-started their Group F campaign with a 1-0 victory on Tyneside.
The Germany midfielder’s 45th-minute strike clinched victory at a rain-soaked St James’ Park on a night when three more points for Eddie Howe’s men, who twice hit the crossbar late on, would have left them with one foot in the last-16.
They will now head into tough away games in Dortmund and against Paris Saint-Germain next month with serious work to do to extend their stay in the competition.
And they will possibly have to do it without midfielder Sandro Tonali, who was used as a second-half substitute amid speculation he could be handed a lengthy ban for alleged breaches of betting rules.
Memories of Newcastle’s 4-1 demolition of PSG earlier this month faded as last season’s Bundesliga runners-up produced an accomplished away display to remind them that the race for qualification from Group F has a long way to go.
Follow the reaction below plus get the latest odds and tips for Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund right here:
Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
51 mins: Nick Pope is trying to get Newcastle up the pitch with quick transitions and throws over to Anthony Gordon on the left wing.
Gordon is too quick for Mats Hummels and has repeatedly won the battle for pace but a couple of times now he’s been unable to control Pope’s pass and any hopes of a sharp counter have died down.
Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
48 mins: Nearly! Dortmund work the ball nicely up the pitch and feed it over to the left side where Niclas Fullkrug collects the ball. He flicks a pass into the box and almost finds Marco Reus only for Nick Pope to come off his line and pluck the ball out of the air.
Second half! Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
Newcastle get the match restarted at St. James’ Park needing to fight back to get themselves into the game. The rain is pouring down but the fans are in full voice and will cheer the team on until the final whistle.
Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund lead a thrilling Champions League clash at St James’ Park after this Felix Nmecha finish. It’s been end-to-end stuff so far, but Newcastle are behind and are in need of a response.
HT Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
After some technical difficulties, we’re back in business.
It’s been an interesting first half at St. James’ Park with both teams creating plenty of chances in the opening 15 minutes. Nick Pope has been called into action on numerous occasions with Gregor Kobel as denying Anthony Gordon twice at the other end.
The deadlock was broken right at the end of the half though after a wonderful move from the visitors.
Nico Schlotterbeck lunges forward and tackles Anthony Gordon inside his own half before sending the ball forward and sprinting out to the left for an overlapping run.
He receives the ball back, carries it into the penalty area then pulls it back to Felix Nmecha who calmly guides a side-footed effort past Nick Pope to open the scoring!
Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund
Should Newcastle win tonight they will remain top of Group F and will be one step closer to reaching the knockout rounds. There’s a couple of changes in the team and the Magpies won’t have Sandro Tonali on the pitch from the start.
The Italian should make an appearance later in the match but with a ban from football on the horizon, Eddie Howe may want to give his other midfielders experience of the European top-flight.
Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund
Joe Willock is back in the Newcastle matchday squad for the first time since suffering a hamstring injury against Brighton in May.
The midfielder played in the Europa League during his time at Arsenal but has yet to appear in the Champions League. Will he make his debut tonight?
Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund
Newcastle go into tonight’s game on the back of an eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
The Magpies have scored more goals (24) than any other Premier League side this season and have also registered more shots on target inside the box (46), converted more of their attempts (18.9%) and scored more ‘big chances’ (20) than any other team in the division.
Pre-match thoughts from Eddie Howe
The Newcastle boss stopped by TNT Sports ahead of kick off to chat about his team’s experiences in the Champions League so far.
“We have to look back at the PSG game and what we did well.” He said, “When we play at our best here, our off-the-ball work is a key feature.
“This will be a different game, though. Dortmund are a very good team, very dangerous. At home one of our key hallmarks is our intensity and I don’t think we should change for Europe.
“Dortmund have different strengths and we have to try to combat those, we need the crowd like an extra man, that’s our responsibility early in the game.”
Howe’s full thoughts can be heard below:
Sandro Tonali is the latest victim of football’s double standards
So Sandro Tonali has provided Newcastle with greater problems than the conundrum of if and how he and Bruno Guimaraes can play together. Not least because there is the very real possibility that the Italian and the Brazilian, some £100m of imported class, may be soon barred from taking the field together. Not, it should be said, by anything Guimaraes has done.
Investigations by the Italian police and the Italian Football Federation resulted in Tonali’s removal from the Azzurri squad. Should he be banned for illegal betting on football, the £50m signing’s season, which began with one of the great debuts in Newcastle history, could be abruptly curtailed. The precedents from Tonali’s homeland are not promising: the Juventus midfielder Nicolo Fagioli will serve a seven-month suspension for gambling on games. In Tonali’s case, there is a significant difference which could increase the sanction: he reportedly admitted to betting on AC Milan matches. Which, as he was their midfield fulcrum at the time, compounds the offence. The maximum penalty possible is a three-year ban.
Tonali may be more symptom than cause of a wider issue, more victim than offender. His agent, Giuseppe Riso, said the 23-year-old suffers from a gambling addiction. If so, he is not alone: so does Ivan Toney. The Brentford and England striker scored 20 Premier League goals last season: he has none so far this season for the simple reason he is mid-way through an eight-month ban for betting, including on his own teams to lose in games where he was not playing.
Sandro Tonali is the latest victim of football’s double standards
The Newcastle midfielder faces an uncertain future with Italian police investigating illegal betting on football and, as Richard Jolly writes, the game’s ubiquity ensures it touches every wider societal issue
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