Chukwueze Saves Milan, Sends Newcastle Packing From Europe

On a night of wildly oscillating emotions in St James’ Park, Tyneside, it was Nigerian forward, Samuel Chukwueze who stepped off the substitutes’ bench and promptly scored with his first touch to send the Serie A side, AC Milan into the Europa League competition.

Indeed, Chukwueze’s heroics effectively saw Coach Eddie Howe’s horizons contracted. But many football aficionados would readily acknowledge that the feeling was good, if not excellent, while Newcastle’s European odyssey lasted

However, the reality that there will be no more midweek trips to the continent, at least this season, for Howe’s ultimately exhausted players came as a nasty shock to disconsolate Newcastle fans at the end of an evening in which Milan spent a large part on the back foot being bullied by the initially excellent Joelinton and co.

When Joelinton swept the 131-year-old Club, popularly called ‘The Magpies’ into the lead after about 33 minutes of play, a place in the last 16 of the Champions League beckoned but, in the end, Paris Saint-Germain’s draw at Dortmund was sufficient to clinch the Ligue 1 side that slot.

Even so, a draw would have been enough for Newcastle to make the Europa League but, after Christian Pulisic equalised for Stefano Pioli’s side, fatigue began disrupting the ferocity of Howe’s intense high press and Rafael Leão and friends sensed an opportunity.

After Leão missed a sitter, Coach Pioli made a highly inspired trio of substitutions, and all three newcomers featured in the winner with Luka Jovic and Noah Okafor heavily involved in the elegant passing move which led to Chukwueze sweeping the ball beyond Martin Dubravka a minute later.

Dubravka, who passed a late fitness test, was left stranded on his line by the Nigerian striker, a development that shattered the injury-prone Newcastle said that could only boast of a slim substitutes’ bench featuring only seven players. The situation reflected a St James’ Park injury crisis which has now seen the team losing three successive matches.

With the coach demanding that his team “come out with all guns blazing”, ‘The Magpies’ did not disappoint, persistently forcing Milan into defensive blind alleys and attacking cul-de-sacs as Manager Pioli paced his technical area in an increasingly agitated manner.

For protracted periods Newcastle were unrecognisable from the team that conceded seven goals in their previous two games against Everton and Tottenham. At times Milan simply did not know how to handle them and struggled to establish any semblance of a passing rhythm.

Hats off to the 17-year-old academy graduate Lewis Miley whose characteristically smart pass paved the way for Joelinton to nearly lift the roof off the stadium by shooting Newcastle into a deserved 33rd-minute lead. After taking a steadying touch, Joelinton’s ensuing shot from the edge of the area flew, inexorably, beyond Maignan. Howe’s left-sided midfielder joined Newcastle as a £40m centre-forward and delighted in reminding everyone precisely why scouts once saw him as a new Alan Shearer.

Milan temporarily became so unnerved that they resorted increasingly to optimistic long balls while Maignan was so annoyed with a perceived lack of protection that he argued long and hard with the referee even after collecting a booking for dissent.

Given the manner Newcastle finally began struggling to sustain their early tempo, Coach Pioli’s players belatedly enjoyed a bit of possession as the second half wore on. Suddenly, even the outstanding Joelinton began to look human after all. How Howe must have wished Sandro Tonali, his former Milan midfielder, was not serving a 10-month suspension for contraventions of Italian betting regulations.

Newcastle’s manager frowned after Pulisic equalised at the end of a move involving Tomori connecting with Leão’s deep cross only to miscue an attempted shot. No matter; Giroud slid the ball across goal for Pulisic to apply the finishing touch from six yards to make it 1-1.

Despite Maignan performing wonders to somehow tip Bruno Guimarães’s gloriously curving shot onto the crossbar, Leão, clean through, shot fractionally wide with the goal at his mercy. He thought he had blown Milan’s chances, but Chukwueze had other ideas. – With The Guardian report