Heartbreak for Newcastle who crash out of Europe with defeat against Milan
It was a cruel ending to a first UCL campaign in 20 years for the Magpies, who finished bottom of the group after the defeat, while Milan came third behind second-place Paris Saint Germain on the head-to-head rule.
The Magpies were greeted by a cauldron of noise inside St James’ Park with the Geordie faithful playing their part on a potentially pivotal night in Newcastle’s season. Their fate partly relied on events in Dortmund, but the hosts were doing all they could to force an early opening goal.
Kieran Trippier had an early strike from a free-kick that flew over the bar, before Rossoneri defender Fikayo Tomori made a sensational tackle to deny Miguel Almirón a tap-in from Joelinton’s cut-back.
It was the Brazilian that delivered the breakthrough in some style with 33 minutes on the clock, taking a touch and rifling a ferocious finish past Mike Maignan. That propelled the Magpies into second spot over Paris Saint-Germain thanks to the head-to-head rule, with the French side still contesting a goalless stalemate in Germany heading into half-time.
The feel-good factor was raised even more on Tyneside after the break with news of Karim Adeyemi’s opener against PSG, which moved Newcastle a point clear of the French champions. Warren Zaïre-Emery’s equaliser shrunk the Magpies’ advantage back to the head-to-head rule, in the first part of a double blow for Howe’s side.
Christian Pulisic levelled the scores just shy of the hour mark from close range, after the American was expertly teed up in the box by Olivier Giroud. It would be a huge dampener on the atmosphere, as Newcastle dropped back down to the third spot they occupied before kick-off.
Bruno Guimarães thought he had restored the hosts' advantage from distance, but was denied when Maignan superbly managed to tip his long-range strike onto the bar.
The anguish on Howe’s face was clear to see when Callum Wilson miscued his attempt from Tino Livramento’s cross, but it could have been so much worse moments later, as Rafael Leão could only hit the post in a one-on-one with Martin Dúbravka.
But Milan always looked a threat on the break, and the Rossoneri turned the match on its head through Samuel Chukwueze’s excellent finish at the end of a blistering counter-attack. Stefano Pioli’s side had moved into third, but sat behind PSG on the head-to-head rule.
There would be no further drama on a night packed full of drama on Tyneside, as the Magpies succumbed to a third consecutive defeat across all competitions.
This will sting much more, given their European adventure ends before Christmas. Meanwhile, Milan showed impressive resilience and now have UEFA Europa League football as a consolation prize heading into the New Year.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan)
