Newcastle United bowed out of the Champions League on Wednesday night in agonising fashion, having been 1-0 in front early in the game through a wonderful Joelinton strike at the edge of the penalty area.
However, perhaps the Magpies acted slightly naively in their approach after AC Milan equalised. Eddie Howe’s side pushed forward in the hopes of bagging the winning goal but were punished late on by Samuel Chukwueze who fired the Rossoneri into the Europa League.
Despite a solid showing in the first half, many Newcastle players simply weren’t at the races and one player in particular may have played his way out of the starting lineup ahead of this weekend’s clash at home to Fulham in the Premier League.
Miguel Almiron’s performance in numbers
Miguel Almiron was a player who failed to have any real impact on the match. GOAL handed the tricky Paraguayan a 3/10 match rating for his display at St. James’ Park.
The £21m attacker had a number of opportunities throughout the match to score for Newcastle but he failed to convert any of them. At the end of the game, Almiron boasted an xG of 0.86 to Newcastle’s total of 1.78 xG which is exactly 48% of the team’s tally, yet he couldn’t put the ball beyond Mike Maignan once.
There was one chance in particular that Almiron wasted in the 20th minute, needing just a touch to tuck the ball away. Unfortunately, the 29-year-old refused to go with his weaker right foot and the chance went begging.
Furthermore, Almiron lost possession of the ball 20 times against Milan, failed to create a single opportunity and didn’t even complete one dribble.
Goals
0
Expected Goals
0.86
Shots
3
Big Chances
1
Passing Accuracy
77%
Dribbles
0
Assists
0
Expected Assists
0.04
Crosses
0
Stats via FotMob
Despite some dismal displays recently, Howe has very limited options on the right side if Almiron was to take a seat on the bench. However, the return of Dan Burn could offer the manager something a little different.
Tino Livramento’s stats this season
Tino Livramento made his first competitive start for Newcastle United against Manchester City in the EFL Cup back in September. Howe put the £40m summer signing at right-back, with Kieran Trippier taking a backseat on the bench.
The 21-year-old was outstanding against the European champions, making two clearances, three interceptions, six ball recoveries and one last-man tackle, as per FotMob. After the game, Newcastle legend Malcolm Macdonald hailed the fullback’s performance, claiming City star Jack Grealish was “completely sickened by him”.
Livramento only became a regular in the first team after Burn sustained a nasty back injury in November against Arsenal, having now started seven of Newcastle’s previous eight matches. Nevertheless, with Burn back fit, Livramento could become a squad rotation player once more.
That is unless Howe decides to try him in a different role. With Almiron struggling at the moment, the manager could push Livramento up to become a right-winger. This is a position Livramento has played before, having been on the right of the Magpies’ front three in a 2-0 defeat against Borussia Dortmund a few weeks ago when Almiron was sidelined with his own injury.
The £62k-per-week defender excelled in this position too despite having only ever played there once in his entire career.
Shots
1
Created chances
1
Big chances created
1
Expected Assists
0.26
Passing Accuracy
86
Crosses
2
Passes Into Final Third
4
Ball Recoveries
7
Stats via FotMob
Perhaps Livramento won’t offer the goalscoring threat that Almiron does, but he will be far more creative, looking to get the ball to Alexander Isak or Callum Wilson in the box as opposed to shooting on-site. This could be a good option for Howe to switch things up a little.
