Newcastle United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers. Premier League.
St James' Park, NewcastleAttendance50,223.
Report and highlights as Wolves secured a first away win since October
Sunday 9 December 2018 21:52, UK
Matt Doherty's stoppage-time header ensured Wolves made it back-to-back wins in the Premier League following a 2-1 win against 10-man Newcastle at St James' Park.
Diogo Jota (17) scored his second goal in as many Premier League matches to give the visitors the lead but Newcastle were back on level terms six minutes later through Ayoze Perez's header (23).
The hosts were left to play 33 minutes with 10 men when referee Mike Dean showed DeAndre Yedlin a straight red card for bringing down Jota, but it looked like Rafael Benitez's side had done enough to hold on for a point until Doherty pounced in the fourth minute of stoppage time to seal Wolves' first away win in two months.
Victory sees Nuno Espirito Santo's side move up to 10th in the Premier League, while Newcastle stay 15th, three points above the relegation places.
The visitors made the perfect start, taking the lead in the 17th minute when Helder Costa's flat cross from the right picked out Jota, who controlled the ball on his chest before volleying past Martin Dubravka from close range.
Newcastle almost found themselves further behind as Jota's low cross almost picked out Adama Traore at the far post but they were back on level terms six minutes after going behind with Salomon Rondon playing a key role.
The Venezuela striker's stunning free-kick beat Rui Patricio but crashed back off the underside of the crossbar. The visitors struggled to clear which allowed Rondon the chance to produce an inch-perfect cross for Perez, who flicked a superb header past Rui Patricio.
Newcastle were forced into a change at the break as Javier Manquillo replaced Federico Fernandez, who picked up a calf injury. It also meant a positional change for Yedlin, who moved to an unfamiliar position on the right side of a back three.
The hosts were then reduced to 10 men in the 57th minute when, under no pressure at all, Yedlin slipped as he tried to play the ball to Jamaal Lascelles. It allowed Jota to nip and burst past the American, who deliberately pulled him back just outside the penalty area leaving the referee with no choice but to brandish a red card.
Nuno sent on Raul Jimenez and Morgan Gibbs-White in place of Traore and Romain Saiss in search of a winner and the changes almost paid off, Jimenez striking the ball against the crossbar from 20 yards in the 74th minute.
Benitez, already upset by decision to send off Yedlin, was further frustrated when Perez was left clutching his face on the floor following a challenge from Wily Boly. Wolves launched a counter-attack and Doherty almost picked out the far corner but he was denied by a flying Dubravka, who turned the ball around the post.
Just as it was looking as if 10-man Newcastle would hold on for a draw, a stoppage-time shot from Jota was pushed into the path of Doherty by Dubravka and the Republic of Ireland international could not miss with a close-range header right at the death.
Andy Hinchcliffe: "Ayoze Perez has taken a lot of stick off Newcastle fans recently for not taking his chances. He took his goal brilliantly with a superb flicked header. He's worked hard for the cause as well."
Rafael Benitez: "I saw the replay and we need VAR right now. You can see the replay. I was praising the referees after a player was talking and they fined me. Imagine how I feel now. It was an elbow in the face, he was bleeding - it was so obvious. But I have seen the replay. You can see the replay and see the face of the player and after, what happened. Anyone can see that, so we need VAR."
Nuno Espirito Santo: "Honestly, with all my respect - which is a lot - for Rafa, the law is clear. You can argue if Lascelles can arrive on time to avoid the one v one of Diogo with the goalkeeper. I don't think so. Honestly, I have seen it and I don't think so. I think Diogo is clear one v one with the goalkeeper, so the law is clear and it is a red card."
Sky Sports pundits Matt Murray and Shola Ameobi both felt Willy Boly should have been red carded for an elbow on Ayoze Perez inside the area.
Murray: "I've got a Wolves hat on, but for me, that's a red card. If you jump with your arms in the air like that you're running the risk of giving away a penalty. It's definitely a penalty if VAR looked at it. You couldn't complain if he got a red card too. It was a pivotal moment."
Ameobi: "I've broken a couple of cheekbones from challenges like that and it is very dangerous. It's a definite red card. It's not a natural movement, he's going up for the ball - there's no reason to swing his arm back."
Newcastle's next game is on Saturday when they travel to the John Smith's Stadium to face Huddersfield (3pm). Wolves are also back in action next Saturday when they face Bournemouth at Molineux.
