The Good, The Bad, and The Average #43: NUFC player ratings vs. Ipswich Town (h) [PL34]

Newcastle United survived one of the worst refereeing performances ever seen at St James' Park to comfortably beat Ipswich Town 3-0 on Saturday afternoon, condemning the Tractor Boys to The Championship.

In a frustrating first half where the Magpies dominated the ball but lacked a spark, match official Michael Salisbury made bad decision after bad decision to infuriate home and away fans alike. He did send off Ben Johnson, though, at least!

How he missed the foul on Jacob Murphy for the stoppage time penalty we were awarded will forever be a mystery. Thankfully, VAR James Bell, who had an insanely busy match, stepped in to encourage him to overturn his non-decision.

Salisbury's impact in the second half was mercifully lessened due to the game state, as goals from Dan Burn and Will Osula from a pair of Kieran Trippier crosses ensured Newcastle returned to third in the table with four games remaining.

Everybody in black and white played their part, with Eddie Howe a welcome sight back in the dugout, though our opponents couldn't have played too much worse. Here's how we scored it, with highs of '9' and perhaps generous lows of '2'...

Getty Images

The Good

It's so great to see Kieran Trippier back to his absolute best after the off-field troubles he's had in the recent past. He had an astonishing 156 touches today and was running things from his advanced slot down the right flank, coming away with two excellent assists for Dan Burn and Will Osula in addition to his clean sheet. He defended stoutly, and some of his short-range passing was a joy.

Sandro Tonali wasn't far behind our Benjamin Button-esque right-back, though, with another all-action display in the heart of our engine room. The number of Ipswich counter-attacks he stopped was ridiculous, and his use of the ball continues to improve, too, which is wonderful to see. Now, just imagine if that first-half effort had found the postage stamp instead of hitting the stanchion...

We fancied Dan Burn to score today for some reason, and the big man from Blyth did not disappoint. He was a constant threat from set plays and seems to have grown in confidence since his cup final heroics, with his defensive heading the best it's ever been. Sven Botman is going to have a tough time getting his place back!

Fabian Schär and Tino Livramento didn't reach the heights of their fellow starting defenders but were both still really good. Schär seems to have found his range again when it comes to long passing and did a good job in his battle with the dangerous Liam Delap, while Livramento just oozes class in games like this. Some of his left-footed deliveries were quality, again, and he was unlucky not to come away with an assist.

Ahead of them, Bruno Guimarães and Jacob Murphy were similarly effective in their roles. Bruno looked at it from the first minute and was conducting proceedings in midfield, though he did misplace a couple of through balls, while Murphy provided a constant supply of threatening deliveries from the right. We suppose he got yet another assist for winning the penalty, too, eh?

Harvey Barnes and Alexander Isak were less effective, not that it mattered too much. Barnes didn't do much wrong but fluffed his lines a couple of times from good positions, while Isak seemed to have borrowed Shola Ameobi's football boots. His penalty was clinical, but everything else he hit could have gone anywhere.

Completing the lot for our starters, Nick Pope won't enjoy many quieter games, while Joe Willock did pretty well without ever really catching fire. Pope didn't have a single save to make and barely touched the ball with his feet, which is always a good thing.

Of the substitutes, this was Will Osula's finest moment in our colours, and he was fully deserving of his well-taken goal. Lewis Miley didn't put a foot wrong, and Anthony Gordon carried plenty of threat when he was able to get on the ball, though he was a little bit selfish at times.

Welcome back, Eddie Howe! It was smashing to see the gaffer back in his rightful place in the dugout. He'll be flying solo at Brighton next week, though, with assistant Jason Tindall now set to serve a one-match ban for picking up his third yellow card of the season!

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Bad

Michael Salisbury gets bumped up to a '2' from a '1' for the first-half red card he issued to Ben Johnson, though given the wing-back was already on a booking, it was hardly like he could get that one wrong. His decision to only add one minute on at the end of a first half riddled with VAR checks, injury stoppages was baffling enough, but he somehow topped it by failing to see the foul on Jacob Murphy for the penalty. Awful, just awful. If we're rating him this low, just imagine what the Ipswich fan sites are saying...

Speaking of Ipswich Town, we're struggling to understand their overall approach to the game today. They were essentially relegated before a ball was kicked, but still rocked up with five at the back and a clear plan to disrupt play and waste as much time as possible. At least go out swinging, eh, Tractor Boys? Their fans were brilliant, though, and they seem a very canny club overall.

We feel like we're bullying him at this point, but Callum Wilson was pants again. Looking on the bright side, there are only four more games left of watching him amble around as the ball bounces off him.

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Average

It was brilliant to have Howe back, but we also got the long-awaited return of Sven Botman. The big, beautiful Dutchman seemed to have plenty to do in his 12 minutes on the pitch and looked a bit ring rusty, but that's to be expected given how little football he's played this season. He'll have a part to play between now and the end of the season, you'd think.

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Breakdown

This turned into an excellent team performance after a slow start, with some superb individual displays.

The XI

Nick Pope – 7

Kieran Trippier – 9 ⭐️

Fabian Schär – 8 (off 83')

Dan Burn – 9

Tino Livramento – 8

Bruno Guimarães – 8

Sandro Tonali – 9

Joe Willock – 7 (off 67')

Jacob Murphy – 8 (off 67')

Alexander Isak – 7 (off 77')

Harvey Barnes – 7 (off 77')

The Subs

Anthony Gordon – 7 (on 67')

Lewis Miley – 7 (on 67')

Will Osula – 8 (on 77')

Callum Wilson – 5 (on 77')

Sven Botman – 6 (on 83')

The Gaffer

Eddie Howe – 8

The Opposition

Ipswich Town – 2

The Ref

Michael Salisbury – 2

Serena Taylor / Newcastle United

The Next

It's a trip to one of our bogey grounds next Sunday, as we head south to the AMEX Stadium for a clash with fellow European chasers Brighton & Hove Albion.

It'll be a 2 p.m. (BST) kick-off on Sunday afternoon and will be shown live by Sky. We'd snap your hand off for a point, but Eddie will be going there to win.

Howay the lads!