How did the players fare in Newcastle United’s goalless draw with Leicester City that secured Champions League qualification?


NEWCASTLE (4-3-3):

7 Pope: Didn’t have anything to do for 90 minutes, but then made a crucial stop from Castagne in stoppage time

8 Trippier: Rock solid defensively, with his ser-piece deliveries at the other end causing a succession of problems for the Leicester defence

7 Schar: Kept Vardy quiet with a minimum of fuss and was always in the right position to deal with Leicester’s attacks

7 Botman: Dominated defensively, as he has all season – is one of the unsung heroes of the Newcastle team

6 Burn: Dealt with Leicester’s attacking threat down their right-hand side, but wasn’t always the most composed in possession

7 Longstaff: His return to the starting side restored some balance to Newcastle’s midfield – kept the ball moving in the central third

7 Guimaraes: Was perhaps fortunate to avoid an early dismissal, but controlled much of the game from that point onwards

8 Anderson: Proved he is more than capable of handling himself at this level – made some useful breaks down the Newcastle left

7 Almiron: Struck the post with a first-half strike and kept probing in an attempt to break down the Foxes defence

6 Wilson: Didn’t see a lot of the ball, but came within inches of breaking the deadlock when he fired against the post in the first half

7 Isak: Threatened as he broke infield from the left and came close with a second-half strike that was tipped over


Subs:

5 Saint-Maximin (for Wilson, 68): Wasn’t really able to make an impact in the closing stages of the game

Murphy (for Anderson, 77)

Gordon (for Almiron, 87)

(not used): Dubravka (gk), Dummett, Lewis, Targett, Ashby, Miley.


LEICESTER (3-4-1-2):

Iverson 8; FAES 8, Souttar 7, Evans 6 (Daka 62, 5); Castagne 7, Ndidi 6 (Mendy 88), Soumare 7, Thomas 6; Tielemans 5; Iheanacho 5 (Maddison 46, 5), Vardy 5 (Barnes 62, 6).

Subs (not used): Smithies (gk), Kristiansen, Tete, Amartey, Praet.


Man Of The Match: ELLIOT ANDERSON – The midfielder was a last-minute addition to the starting side, but he acquitted himself well on the Magpies’ left.