Newcastle vs Everton result: Ayoze Perez double seals comeback win on day of chaos and controversy
Newcastle 3-2 Everton: Two late goals from Perez completed a remarkable turnaround at St James' Park
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Pickford was a Sunderland man in a delirious Newcastle. His worst nightmare had played out.
Right then he probably wished he had actually been sent off, as he should have been, for a rugby tackle on Rondon in the game’s first half.
Lee Mason ignored the obvious goalscoring opportunity, but then he ignored much, and that added to the raucous nature the afternoon.
Controversy gatecrashed this match at that point, just past the half hour mark. Everton had gone ahead in the 18th minute with a glancing header from Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
In the 29th minute, there was nothing on a deep left wing cross from Matt Ritchie. Pickford, in his bright yellow kit, came with arms high and, to his horror, dropped the ball. Rondon was there, six yards from goal and poised to shoot when the England goalkeeper rugby tackled him to the ground, putting both his arms around both the forward’s legs. Instinct said red, but that can be wrong. Mason, however produced fury, in reaching for neither card.
Replay would show that when the opportunity came Rondon’s way, he was level with the defender Kurt Zouma, with an open goal ahead of him. By the time Pickford’s double armed challenge had completely floored the powerful frame of Rondon, Zouma was back on his line.
Perhaps that was why Mason called it wrongly. It wasn’t an obvious goalscoring opportunity at that point, but it had been.
Fury and disbelief filled the stadium. Pickford would carry a wry smile at half-time as he headed down the tunnel for what happened next.
Matt Ritchie stepped up, as usual, to drill his penalty, and Pickford went left, but stuck a leg to parry an spot-kick that was very straight. Everton’s fans had barely finished celebrating when their side doubled their lead.
There were in fact 71 seconds between penalty save and the moment Richarlison swept in a rebounded Andre Gomes right wing cross.
It did not help the mood of a hostile football ground.
It did not hurt building a fire inside the stadium that eventually blew Everton away.
It seemed preposterous that it would be Marco Silva who was berating Mason at full-time.
It started in the 65th minute with a brilliant bit of interplay between Ayoze Perez and Rondon that ended with the on-loan West From striker smashing a left footed volley past Pickford.
The atmosphere swirled around the old ground and with nine minutes remaining Miguel Almiron cracked a 25 yard drive that Pickford could only parry. Perez was on hand to sweep in an equaliser.
The game still had one more dramatic turn to take. Two minutes later, Perez was there again.
Tyneside erupted.
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