Newcastle got a worrying glimpse of life without Alexander Isak as they were held to a 0-0 draw in their Premier League opener at Aston Villa despite Ezri Konsa's dismissal.
Villa defender Konsa was sent off for a foul on Anthony Gordon midway through the second half on Saturday. But Newcastle were unable to take advantage.
Swedish striker Isak remained in the spotlight despite not being part of the proceedings. He was not involved against Villa after reportedly informing the club he wants to leave to join Premier League champions Liverpool.
“I don't think we dominated, chance-wise, the way we wanted. We were maybe a little bit too anxious to score,” Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said.
“If you're not totally together in the Premier League, you're going to find it very difficult, but I think we answered a few questions today in terms of our spirit.”
Newcastle's new signing Anthony Elanga almost scored in the third minute but Villa's 34-year-old goalkeeper Marco Bizot made an excellent reflex save on his league debut to deny the Swedish winger.
Bizot was called into action several more times as Howe's side dominated, getting down smartly to his right to turn a low Anthony Gordon shot away for a corner and coming to collect a stream of crosses as he grew in confidence.
Villa managed to maintain some control and they could have taken the lead early in the second half when John McGinn picked out Boubacar Kamara with a super cross, but the midfielder’s header was straight at keeper Nick Pope.
Villa forward Ollie Watkins had a similar tame shot after 65 minutes before the home side were thrown into disarray a minute later when Konsa was shown a straight red card.
Elanga had picked up the ball as Newcastle launched a counter-attack and sent a superb pass through the middle for Gordon to chase. Konsa was sent off for pulling the forward's shoulder to prevent him getting through on goal.
Newcastle continued to fire crosses into the box but without the clinical Isak, they could not convert them.
“I hope it’s resolved quickly, because it’s news around us all the time,” Howe told TNT Sports about the Isak situation. “Players have managed to shut that out and perform. We have to continue to do that.”
Newcastle's next game is at home to Liverpool.
“It’s always spicy against Liverpool, there’s a history to the fixture,” Howe said. “We look forward to it. We know how good they are.”
“It has been difficult, because we're such a tight-knit group. We've never really had any problems publicly, and that being the first thing that's happened, that's tested us,” Gordon said.
“This (situation with Isak) can sort of battle-test you and make you better in the end, I think that's going to be the case,” he added, saying that he was prepared to play as a centre-forward if the manager wanted him to.
“I really like it. I feel like, as my career progresses, I feel like I will end up more central anyway, so it's come a bit earlier than I'd imagined, but I'm really enjoying it, it's just going to take some getting used to.”
Tottenham off to a flyer
Thomas Frank earned his first Premier League win as Tottenham manager as Richarlison's brilliant overhead kick inspired a 3-0 success against Burnley on Saturday.
Frank was hired from Brentford to replace Ange Postecoglou after the Australian was sacked at the end of last season.
The Dane made a good first impression in Tottenham's opening game of the top-flight season thanks to a majestic display from Richarlison.
The Brazil forward scored twice, including an eye-catching acrobatic strike, to reward his manager for selecting him instead of Dominic Solanke.
Brennan Johnson hit Tottenham's third to complete an uplifting start to the Frank era.
Even winning the Europa League to secure Champions League qualification did not save Postecoglou after Tottenham ended 17th in the Premier League - their lowest finish since 1976-77.
Frank nearly kicked off his reign with a trophy in midweek, but Tottenham lost on penalties to Paris Saint-Germain in the Uefa Super Cup after blowing a two-goal lead in the closing stages.
Also, Sunderland shocked West Ham 3-0 on their return to the Premier League.
Following an eight-year absence from the league, the Black Cats went ahead just after the hour mark through Eliezer Mayenda before Dan Ballard's header doubled their advantage.
Substitute Wilson Isidor came off the bench and put the cherry on top of a perfect afternoon to wrap up three points in Sunderland's first Premier League appearance since May 2017.
