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:
Longstaff on Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund are bottom of Group F with one point from their two Champions League matches so far but they have won each of their last five Bundesliga fixtures.
"They’re a top side with some really good players," said Sean Longstaff ahead of the game.
"Their fanbase is similar to ours and we’re two similar clubs. [It will be] a night that all players will want to be a part of."
Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund played four games against English opponents in the 2022/23 Champions League.
They lost 2-1 at Manchester City on Matchday 2 before securing a 0-0 draw at home on Matchday 5. The German side then beat Chelsea 1-0 in the round of 16 first leg, but bowed out of the competition after a 2-0 second-leg loss in London.
The goalless draw against City ended the German club’s eight-game losing streak against English clubs while the first leg against Chelsea is Dortmund’s only win against Premier League opposition since a 2-1 victory at Tottenham in the 2015/16 Europa League round of 16 second leg.
Their record since that win was two draws, nine defeats.
Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund
Newcastle’s last game against German opponents was the first they failed to win – a goalless draw at Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2006/07 Uefa Cup group stage.
The Magpies had scored three goals in each of their first four meetings against Bundesliga teams, winning three successive games 3-1 before that draw in Frankfurt.
That included both previous home matches – against 1860 München in the 2001 Uefa Intertoto Cup semi-final second leg and Bayer Leverkusen in the 2002/03 Champions League second group stage with Alan Shearer scoring a hat-trick in the latter fixture.
Newcastle and Dortmund share same glaring hole in their team before Champions League clash
Newcastle is twinned with Gelsenkirchen and, as Borussia Dortmund need no reminders, the German city is home to their great rivals, Schalke. They are found in the second division now: as Newcastle can testify from the Mike Ashley years, a vast stadium offers no immunity against relegation. Instead, as Newcastle and Dortmund go head to head in the Champions League tonight, they find themselves twinned in a footballing respect, wrestling with the same problem: how to cope with the loss of a pivotal midfielder.
For Jude Bellingham, read Sandro Tonali, one gone to Real Madrid for a nine-figure sum, the other set for 10 months on the sidelines with a gambling ban. Tonali played in a Champions League semi-final for AC Milan last season. He will not for Newcastle this year, regardless of how far they progress. Wednesday’s game could be his last.
“I’m expecting him to be available,” manager Eddie Howe said. If not, his plans may require a late rethink, Tonali’s campaign already curtailed.
Newcastle and Dortmund share same glaring hole before Champions League clash
Newcastle come into their third Champions League game on top of Group F but the impending absence of Sandro Tonali on gambling charges leaves them, like opponents Dortmund, with a crucial role to fill
Pre-match thoughts from Anthony Gordon
Anthony Gordon spoke to Newcastle’s media team before tonight’s match and explained how he is looking forward to each game since arriving at St. James’ Park.
“Every game that’s coming, I’m looking forward to.” He said, “I’m really enjoying playing.
“It’s great that games are coming thick and fast, especially when the team’s playing so well. In the Champions League you’ve definitely got a special feeling, particularly at St James’ Park.
“I’m really excited.”
Newcastle vs Borussia Dortmund
Tonight’s encounter is the first meeting of the two teams and only Newcastle’s sixth ever game against a German club in Uefa competition.
Dortmund, by contrast, are facing English opponents in Europe for the 33rd time.
Newcastle have never lost to a German side while Dortmund have been beaten in seven of their last eight games in England.
Last time out in the Champions League
Buoyed by playing their first home Champions League game in 20 years, Newcastle dismantled 2020 runners-up Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 at St. James’ Park.
It was a performance built on the back of an opening 0-0 draw at AC Milan in what was their first game in the competition since 2002/03.
Now the Group F leaders are aiming for another win against seasoned campaigners Borussia Dortmund who are still searching for their first win and goal having been beaten 2-0 in Paris on Matchday 1 and getting held to a 0-0 draw by Milan in their second fixture.
Borussia Dortmund line-up
Dortmund XI: Kobel; Wolf, Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Bensebaini; Nmecha, Can, Sabitzer; Reus, Fullkrug, Malen
Subs: Meyer. Lotka, Ozcan, Reyna, Haller, Moukoko, Sule, Adeyemi, Blank, Bynoe-Gittens
Newcastle team changes
Eddie Howe makes two changes to the Newcastle team that defeated Crystal Palace in the Premier League at the weekend. Callum Wilson and Jacob Murphy drop out with Alexander Isak and Miguel Almiron slotting back into the forward line.
Joe Willock returns for a place on the bench and Sandro Tonali will start as a substitute as well.
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