Newcastle United manager, Matthias Jaissle, has criticised the decision to award Liverpool a stoppage-time penalty in their dramatic Premier League draw at St James’ Park.
Liverpool rescued a point when Dominik Szoboszlai converted from the spot in the 99th minute after Victor Munoz went down following a challenge from Lewis Hall.
Newcastle had been on course for victory after taking control of the contest, but referee Stuart Attwell pointed to the penalty spot in the closing moments, leaving Jaissle frustrated with the call.
The Newcastle boss argued that the contact between Hall and Munoz was not enough to justify a penalty and questioned whether such decisions were good for the game.
“For me, it was no penalty – it was a really soft one. If you give that, we will see many, many penalties. I don’t think that Lewis can do anything else, he cannot just disappear on the field! It’s a really soft penalty. If you give these penalties then you have to give a lot in this season and I’m not sure if that’s good for football.”
The result denied Jaissle a winning start in his first home Premier League match, although he praised his young Newcastle squad for their performance.
Attention now turns to the club’s transfer plans, with Jaissle admitting that Newcastle still need reinforcements before the window closes.
“I hope so, today the lads were amazing, a young squad but we have some needs we know internally and we keep that internally. You can count them on one hand.”
The manager also faces uncertainty over Joe Willock, who has attracted reported interest from Turkish side Besiktas.
However, Jaissle is keen to retain the midfielder following his impressive goal against Liverpool.
Newcastle will next face West Bromwich Albion in the Carabao Cup before hosting Tottenham Hotspur in their second Premier League fixture of the season.
