Szoboszlai Penalty Rescues Liverpool Draw at Newcastle

Newcastle twice took the lead through Anthony Elanga and Joe Willock, but Cody Gakpo and Szoboszlai responded for Liverpool as the two sides shared the points.

The hosts made a dream start in Matthias Jaissle’s first Premier League match in charge.

Newcastle opened the scoring after only five minutes when Will Osula drove through midfield and released Elanga on the right side of the penalty area. The winger kept his composure and finished beyond Alisson into the bottom corner.

The goal ended a long league scoring drought for Elanga and gave Newcastle an early platform against a Liverpool side beginning a new era under Andoni Iraola.

Liverpool gradually grew into the match and started to control possession, but Newcastle remained disciplined defensively.

Florian Wirtz forced Lukas Hornicek into a sharp save in the 17th minute, while the visitors continued to push forward without creating enough clear chances.

Liverpool found their equaliser in the 55th minute.

Ryan Gravenberch advanced through midfield before finding Gakpo with a low pass. The Dutch forward turned towards goal and drilled a right-footed finish into the bottom-left corner to make it 1-1.

The scores were level for barely two minutes.

Jaissle introduced Willock from the bench in the 56th minute, and the midfielder made an immediate impact.

Yoane Wissa led a Newcastle counter-attack before feeding Willock, who curled an excellent finish beyond Alisson and in off the post to restore the hosts’ advantage in the 57th minute.

Liverpool responded by making attacking changes, with Alexis Mac Allister and Victor Munoz among those introduced as Iraola searched for another equaliser.

The visitors increased the pressure in the final stages and finished the match with far more attempts than Newcastle, although many of their efforts lacked precision.

Newcastle also remained dangerous on the counter, with Wissa forcing Alisson into an important save late in the contest.

The hosts appeared to be closing in on a memorable opening-day victory as the match entered stoppage time.

Liverpool’s final opportunity arrived in the 96th minute when Munoz burst into the penalty area and went down following contact from Lewis Hall.

The referee immediately pointed to the spot, handing Liverpool one final chance to save the match.

Szoboszlai stepped up in the 99th minute and made no mistake, powering his penalty into the top-left corner beyond Hornicek to make it 2-2 with virtually the final kick of the game.

The goal denied Newcastle what would have been their first Premier League victory over Liverpool since 2015.

The draw also ensured Iraola extended his personal Premier League unbeaten run to 19 matches, while Jaissle had to settle for a point after coming within seconds of beginning his Newcastle reign with a victory.

The contest also featured Alexander Isak’s first return to St James’ Park since his £125 million move from Newcastle to Liverpool, although the Swedish striker endured a quiet afternoon against his former club.

Newcastle will next face West Bromwich Albion in the EFL Cup, while Liverpool return to Anfield for a Premier League meeting with Nottingham Forest.