Newcastle United 4-0 Olympiakos (Toon win 7-1 on aggregate) |
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Date:
Wednesday March 16 2005
Kick Off: 7.45pm BST
Venue: St. James' Park
Att: 32,163
Ref: Konrad Plautz (Austria)
Comp: UEFA Cup 4th Round 2nd Leg |
| Premiership
Match Report In Association With Toon
Ale |
|
And The Mags Go Marching On...
By
Wullie
Does anyone know anywhere in Newcastle that sells humble pie?
62 minutes gone on the 17th February 2005, 1-0 down against Heerenveen.
A large number of supporters would have given Graeme Souness his P45
there and then as we looked impotent up front, hopeless at the back
and with an FA Cup tie approaching against the Champions-elect, the
majority had the season written off. The 'Sack the Board' chants emanating
from the away end of the Abe Lenstra stadium were a throwback to the
dark days of the 1980s and the gloom which had slowly descended onto
Tyneside over Christmas looked like staying for a long time.
Then Laurent Robert came on.
Fast forward to less than a month later, 62 minutes gone on 16th March
2005, the aforementioned Robert and the 2004 Geordie Public Enemy
No. 1 Kieron Dyer had just left the field to standing ovations and
hearty handshakes from their manager after both had made vital contributions
to a 3-0 lead over the Greek champions and those same supporters could
have been forgiven for starting to wonder just when their alarm clock
was going to go off.
After eight wins on the bounce for the first time since Keegan's 'so
close' season as well as an beckoning FA Cup semi final against the
holders, the side is so brimming with confidence that this tie, which
had looked like a substantial obstacle when the draw was made, was
made to look like a total formality.
There was no doubt that Olympiakos were depleted following the antics
of referee Ibanez in Athens as well as an injury to Rivaldo, but Newcastle
were looking a little weak in certain areas too. With Boumsong cup-tied
and Bramble and Babayaro both crocked, Andy O'Brien and Steven Taylor
came back in, Taylor starting this time at left back with Souness
preferring the experience of Hughes and O'Brien in the centre. In
the midfield, Butt came in for the rested Faye and Jermaine Jenas
took Dyer's position wide on the right, as Dyer moved up front to
replace the once-more injured Kluivert.
The game started rather slowly, with Newcastle a little sloppy in
the early stages but came alive after 15 minutes when Butt latched
onto a half-clearance and nearly uprooted the Leazes goal with a thunderous
volley which cannoned off the crossbar. It didn't take much longer
to put the tie to bed though when the Austrian ref gave a free kick
40 yards from goal. Robert miss hit his shot into a crowded penalty
area and as the ball bounced out, Bowyer returned it with a header,
which Kieron Dyer collected on the edge of the six yard box. Dyer
was running away from goal though and looked to be going nowhere,
but his back heel under George Clooney was sublime in its simplicity.
Just like Kluivert's at Palace, Dyer's goal was a terrific display
of skill and quick thinking, described by the media as 'cheeky'. Cheeky
it was, but when Thierry Henry does it, it's 'pure genius', The Sun
makes a special pullout section to celebrate and it wins the BBC Goal
of the Month competition ahead of our own Darren Ambrose's stunning
volley at Bolton. Go figure.
By this time, Olympiakos, with a 4-1 deficit to contend with, looked
dead in the water and this was obvious soon after the goal when Shearer
outran (honest) Anatolakis to put himself one on one with Nikopolidis,
only to blaze his half volley over the bar. Shearer could easily have
completed a hat trick by the time he got his first, as two brilliant
Robert crosses were inches from being converted by the skipper, one
he couldn't quite make contact with, the other a diving header dropping
just wide. The first did come though, with the help of that man, Dyer.
Just like he had Thimotee Atouba on Sunday, the England man skinned
his marker time and again all evening and on half time he clipped
a pass back for Shearer to hammer into the corner.
Second half and the Greeks may as well have put a white flag on top
of their goal and handed their forfeit to the ref as United cut through
them over and over again. A looping header from Bowyer caught the
European champion goalkeeper hopelessly out of position and even though
he managed to scramble the ball off his goal-line, he couldn't keep
Bowyer's drive out after Jenas pulled the rebound back across the
box.
Shearer completed the rout on 69 minutes, latching on to a Jenas through
ball, rounding Nikopolidis and giving the man on the line no chance
as he lashed into the roof of the net. Nine to go for the skipper
to equal Wor Jackie's record, with a maximum of 17 games to go. Only
a fool would bet against him.
The rest of the game was pretty slow with the job well and truly done,
even giving Souness the chance to test out the Toon of the future,
with N'Zogbia, Milner and Ramage all getting good run outs and Taylor
getting a good half hour at centre back. All of the youngsters impressed,
Milner being denied a fifth after an excellent finish by an offside
flag.
So then, it's the quarter finals of another cup for us, with this
one probably being the best chance we have had of winning something
since the Fairs Cup. We're the favourites at the bookies and none
of the other sides left in the competition look particularly fearsome,
especially if we play like this. It's Pompey on Saturday and a possible
ninth win in succession for the first time in God-knows-how-long.
Even if we get beat though, it's vitally important that we don't let
it get to us like we did when beaten at the Reebok after a good run
back in October. If we can keep our heads after our next defeat, and
keep some semblance of recent form, the season we wrote off for good
just a month ago could be the one we've all been waiting for.
Please, lads, just this once, don't let the alarm clock go off.
More...
Toon
Player Ratings Vs Olympiakos
| Newcastle
United |
Olympiakos |
Match
Facts & Stats
Half-Time: 2-0
Full-Time: 4-0
Yellow Cards: 1
Red Cards: 0
Goalscorers: Dyer (18),
Shearer (45), Bowyer (54), Shearer (69)
Yellow Cards:0
Red Cards: 0
Substitutions: 3
Milner (Dyer 58), N'Zogbia (Robert 58), Ramage (Carr
67)
Injuries: None to report of
Goalscorers: 0
Yellow Cards: Vallas (90)
Red Cards: 0
Substitutions: 3
Okkas (Djordjevic 60), Filipakos (Giovanni 67), Taralidis (Stoltidis
79)
Injuries: N/A |
| Given |
Nikopolidis |
| Carr |
Mavrogenidis |
| O'Brien |
Anatolakis |
| Hughes |
Pantos |
| Taylor |
Vallas |
| Jenas |
Castillo |
| Butt |
Kafes |
| Bowyer |
Maric |
| Robert |
Djordjevic |
| Shearer |
Stoltidis |
| Dyer |
Giovanni |
| Substitutes
Bench |
| Harper |
Giannou |
|
Ramage |
Koulouheris |
| Milner |
Schurrer |
|
Ambrose |
Filipakos
|
| Faye |
Taralidis |
| N'Zogbia |
D'Acol |
| |
Okkas |
Shearer's 10 goal in Europe this season makes him the leading goalscorer
in the competition, two ahead of his nearest rivals (as of writing).
Newcastle's 8th successive win, matching Keegan's run in '95. It's
now 10 games unbeaten in Europe, 1 more and we'll equal our previous
best which came in last season's UEFA Cup. Dyer's first goal in Europe
this season. Bowyer made his 60th Toon appearance. The 4-0 win was
our 50th in the UEFA Cup.
| How The Goals Were
Scored |
NUFC Goal 18 Minutes: Kieron Dyer Goal
Robert's free kick wasn't cleared and when Bowyer headed it in the
direction of Dyer, the midfielder span to guard it and back-heeled
it into the net all in one go for a brilliant goal. Goal of the game.
NUFC Goal 45 Minutes: Alan Shearer
Jenas played in Dyer down the right who skipped past a challenged,
got to the bye line and cut inside before playing the ball back to
Shearer who smashed it home from 6-yards out, taking a slight deflection
along the way.
NUFC Goal 54 Minutes: Lee Bowyer
Bowyer's looping header had to be scooped out from under the bar by
Olympiakos' 'keeper only for Jenas to retrieve it and play it back
to the former Leeds man who just managed to squeeze his shot under
the despairing goalie.
NUFC Goal 69 Minutes: Alan Shearer
After a sweet passage of player, Jenas rolled the ball to Shearer
who sprung Oly's off-side trap, rounded the keeper and shot high into
the net with the player on the line stranded.
| Match Reaction From
Graeme Souness |
Souness said:
 "They
are a good team, but we made them look very ordinary.
"I must say I was nervous before the game. We had a good lead from
the first leg, but I didn't expect it to be as easy as it was in the
end.
"I thought this could have been a banana skin for us had we not approached
it properly.
"I wanted a big start from the team and we got that, with Kieron getting
the goal that effectively killed the tie.
"I couldn't believe the missed opportunities that Alan (Shearer) had,
he could have had four or five out there and got a lot closer to Jackie
Milburn's record, but it wasn't to be.
"When we went 4-0 up I could relax, it was a really strange feeling
not having any pressure on!
"You don't get that very often, and it was a complete contrast to
the game against Spurs on Sunday when we couldn't wait for the whistle."
Shearer said:
"I'm pleased with the two goals I scored, but I'd have been even more
pleased with three.
"And I should have got three because I probably missed the easiest
chance of all when I was clean through in the first half.
"But I'll take the two I've got and hopefully there will be a few
more to come in Europe before the season is over.
"We respect the teams who are left in the competition, but I don't
think we fear anyone. We know that if we continue to play with confidence
and determination that we can beat anyone.
"It only looked easy because we did the job properly and did exactly
what the manager told us to do.
"He rammed it into us before the game that there was only one way
the tie should go, and that we needed to get among them right from
the start.
"We did that and I think the game was over by half-time."
Dyer said:
 "I
was happy with that goal, it was a bit cheeky but that shows the way
my confidence is at the moment.
"I'm enjoying myself and I feel I'm playing well. I've had a good
run of games in the side, which hasn't always been the case over the
last couple of seasons with the injuries I've had.
"But as I said I'm confident in my own game, and the team are full
of confidence as well having won eight games on the trot, so we're
all happy.
"The gaffer gave a good team talk before the game and told us
we were looking at a potential banana skin.
"People were saying we were through after the good result in the first
leg, but had we allowed them to score first then it could have been
tricky for us.
"My goal calmed things down a bit, and after that we showed we had
the hunger and appetite.
"I think if you look back at the eight wins we've had, then that was
probably the best overall display from us.
"We've done well in the FA Cup to get to the semi-finals, and in Europe
we're looking forward to the UEFA Cup quarter finals.
"But what we have to do now is forget about those competitions, and
focus on getting up the league table.
"Along with Liverpool we should be up there fighting for fourth spot,
not hovering around in mid-table, and it's about time we started doing
something about it.
"Portsmouth on Saturday is a massive game for us now. We're not that
far off the top six, we're only five points off Middlesbrough and
we have games in hand on them as well as a game against them at our
place.
"Three points on Saturday would be another little boost for us.
"They aren't having the best of times at the moment, and we are going
down there full of confidence.
"I'm looking forward to the game, I know that. I picked up a hamstring
injury down there last season and that started off a bad run for me
in terms of injuries.
"Hopefully I'll remember this game for the right reasons, but the
gaffer gave me a little breather against Olympiacos when he subbed
me after an hour or so so I'm raring to go.
"We owe them one actually because they came up here and got a draw
in a game which wasn't one of our better ones, so hopefully we can
go down there and get the three points."
Ramage said:
"It was a dream come true. I thought I had a sneaky chance of getting
on if we went a couple of goals in front and when we did the manager
said 'you're going on'. It happened all in a minute.
"I've played at right-back a few times. I'd play anywhere for this
club. As a boy coming through the ranks you'll play anywhere.
"I was a bit nervous, but as soon as you get on the pitch you're OK.
It's brilliant playing with these players. They breed confidence in
you. All my family were there. My mum, dad and girlfriend were there
so it was nice to go out in front of them.
"The game plan at the start was to try and get a couple of goals in
front early on and kill them off, kill their spirit.
"When Kieron scored it didn't kill the game off. We still had a job
to do. But it made the job a lot easier and when Alan scored it was
perfect for us."
| Match Reaction From Dusan
Bajevic |
Bajevic said:
Nothing yet... |
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