Newcastle 2-0 Juventus
Injured striker Michael Owen was again missing from the Newcastle squad but they did not miss the England man as goals from Andy Carroll and Albert Luque secured a comfortable win over Serie A side Juventus at St James' Park.
United manager Sam Allardyce had hoped to have one or both of Shola Ameobi and
Owen fit for selection, but the pair were one again on the sidelines.
•
Dyer still set to depart
With summer signing Mark Viduka also yet to link up with the side following
international duty, Obafemi Martins and Luque took the chance to impress up
front.
But it was Juventus who had the first chance, Italy forward Vincenzo Iaquinta
making light work of Paul Huntington's challenge before rolling the ball
straight at Shay Given in the Newcastle goal.
The Turin side set the pace early on and it was against the run of play when
Mark Clattenburg awarded the hosts a ninth-minute penalty as Jonathan Zebina
impeded James Milner in the area.
That gave Luque the opportunity to convert from the spot and he did so calmly
to grab his third goal in two games following a brace against Celtic.
Milner continued to threaten on the left flank, twice breaking dangerously on
the counter-attack, while Iaquinta looked to have the beating of Huntington when
the visitors had possession.
Marco Marchionni also impressed but his finishing could not match some fine
approach play.
Soon after, an underhit clearance by Huntington gave Juventus possession and
when captain Pavel Nedved hooked a shot hard and low at the Newcastle goal it
took a diving save from Given to preserve his side's advantage.
The lead doubled when an astute pass from Charles N'Zogbia put Martins clear
on goal.
His powerful shot was parried by Gianluigi Buffon and when the loose ball
found its way to Carroll, on the pitch for two minutes as Luque came off with a
minor knock, he composed himself before firing across the World Cup-winning
goalkeeper and into the net.
Allardyce made changes at the interval, with Kieron Dyer - who has been linked
with a move to West Ham or Tottenham - among the new arrivals.
Although he received a mixed greeting from the fans he started brightly and
was central to a move that saw N'Zogbia narrowly miss with a drilled shot from
30 yards.
The Magpies continued to pressure their opponents and Nolberto Solano 's
53rd-minute free-kick missed everyone in the box before forcing a good save from
Buffon.
Juve briefly came to life on the hour mark when a nice piece of control
allowed Marchionni time to line up a shot from just outside the area.
He hit a curling, right-footed effort but Given was equal to it and pushed it
forcefully to safety.
Two minutes later, Dyer picked up the ball and dashed 60 yards, exchanging
passes with Matthew Pattison before showing neat footwork to glide into the
box.
The England midfielder stopped before releasing his shot but Buffon's
outstretched hand denied him.
In an increasingly youthful team - Solano and Steven Carr making way for
Darren Lough and Charlie Barnett, who joined Pattison, James Troisi and David
Edgar on the pitch - Dyer was becoming influential and had a penalty appeal
turned down as he again attacked at speed.
N'Zogbia, another one of the few remaining first-team regulars, also
shouldered responsibility and tested Buffon with a well judged free-kick 15
minutes from time.
The Italians also opted to blood some less celebrated players in the second
half but it was skipper Nedved who spurned their best chance, scooping the ball
over the crossbar after being allowed to enter the area unattended.
Dyer nearly capped things off for Newcastle with a cheeky back-heel into the
net, but his effort was disallowed for offside.
Dyer still set to depart
Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce insists Kieron Dyer is still heading for the exit door at St James' Park despite an impressive cameo in the 2-0 friendly win over Juventus.
Goals from Albert Luque and young striker Andy Carroll ensured victory for the
Magpies but Dyer caught the eye with an energetic display in the second half.
He made one thrilling 60-yard dash and later put the ball in the net with a
cheeky backheel - an effort that was immediately chalked off for offside - but
the former Bolton boss insists he is still likely to be leaving the club due to
personal reasons.
West Ham and Tottenham are both being heavily linked with the England man, but
no deal is yet off the ground.
'He played very well. But I don't think we can (keep him) for the reasons I
gave on Thursday,' he said.
'The only way I can see to resolve this is for Kieron to move closer to his
family.
'Nobody has come in with the right money yet. Nobody has offered anything
like the money we want.
'If they don't come in (with the right offer) then all I can do is sit down
with Kieron and see if there's something else we can do.
'We used him for 45 minutes today because we were short of numbers.'
One player whose Newcastle career could be going in the other direction is
Luque.
He was considered an expensive flop under former boss Glenn Roeder and looked
like he would struggle to adapt to the rigours of English football.
But in the absence of injured pair Michael Owen and Shola Ameobi - as well as
summer signing Mark Viduka, who is recovering after international duty with
Australia - he has been given the chance to impress Allardyce.
He scored twice in the 4-1 win over Celtic and coolly slotted his first-half
penalty past Gianluigi Buffon to set the ball rolling against the Turin side.
Although he came off after just half an hour with what seemed to be a minor
knock he did enough to impress his boss.
'The only negative thing today was Albert coming off. But he assures me it's
just a tightening (of the muscle).'
Asked if Luque could become a fixture this season, he said: 'Hopefully, If he
can stay fit he could play a part.'
Reflecting on a match that saw United outplay their illustrious opponents and
end the game with a host of youngsters on the pitch, Allardyce said: 'We played
well today. It was very important to get a clean sheet.
'I think at time we even played better than we did against Celtic. But I
don't want people to get carried away because we've beaten Celtic and we've
beaten Juventus.'
Juve boss Claudio Ranieri, the former Chelsea manager, insisted Newcastle's
superior match fitness was key.
'It was tough and Newcastle were good. But they are at a level where their
season is nearly starting and we are not yet.
'Sometimes with our last pass, or with the penalty, we were off or (Shay)
Given would make a great save.
'Given was the best player.'
But he denied that he would be using his knowledge of the English game to
boost his squad while he was in the country.
'Am I looking at players in England now? No. Juventus for now are finished
(in the transfer market).'
