Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola said his side’s refusal to give up salvaged a valuable point after Dominik Szoboszlai’s stoppage-time penalty secured a 2-2 Premier League draw at Newcastle United on Sunday.
Both Iraola and Newcastle manager Matthias Jaissle were overseeing their first Premier League games at their new clubs.
Newcastle led 1-0 and 2-1, but Liverpool clawed their way back twice, finally securing a point with Szoboszlai’s spot kick in the ninth minute of stoppage time.
It was an underwhelming display against a Newcastle side that let itself down with a couple of costly defensive lapses.
The Magpies’ defence stood off early in the second half as Cody Gakpo cancelled out Anthony Elanga’s opener, while Lewis Hall’s foul on Liverpool’s Victor Munoz in the box when the game was all but over cost them two valuable points.
“It’s not the result you wanted before the game, but
obviously finishing, scoring in the last minute, it gives you a
better taste … I don’t think we deserve to lose the game
today,” Iraola said.
“I value the effort from the players, they never gave up,
and at the end it arrived, and we could recover at least one
point.”
There was frustration for Newcastle at conceding such a late
goal, but also pride given that former coach Eddie Howe stepped
down and influential players such as Bruno Guimaraes (sold to
Arsenal) and Sandro Tonali (sold to Tottenham Hotspur) left the
club in the close season.
“It’s rough, especially 30 seconds before the end of the
game, but that’s a huge step for us. That’s the mentality we
need to have through the season,” Newcastle forward Yoane Wissa
said.
“The manager (Jaissle) came three weeks ago and gave us a
lot of information, now we show on the pitch we are ready for
the season. We needed this win to make a statement, but in the
end we draw. We have so much to work on.”
Source: Khaleej Times