Calvert-Lewin penalty rescues draw for Everton at Newcastle

Premier League

Newcastle United 1-1 Everton

Dominic Calvert-Lewin came off the bench to score a late penalty and earn Everton a vital 1-1 draw against Newcastle at St James’ Park.

Alexander Isak had put Eddie Howe’s side ahead early in the game to maintain his fine form and Newcastle had countless opportunities to double the advantage but paid the price for not finishing the job when Paul Dummett pulled down Ashley Young late on.

It took a VAR check to award it but the home side could have no complaints. For Sean Dyche, it was a reward for his triple change in the second half. Calvert-Lewin’s first goal since October moves Everton four points clear of the drop zone.

There were ominous signs for Everton immediately when Jordan Pickford was forced into a smart save from Harvey Barnes inside two minutes and although James Tarkowski did have a headed chance at the other end it was not long before Isak had his moment.

The striker left Jarrad Branthwaite on the deck with a drop of the shoulder before finding the space he needed to arrow the ball into the bottom corner of the net. After scoring twice against West Ham at the weekend, it was another reminder of his quality.

He was the outstanding player on the pitch, Pickford denying him a second with his fingertips late in the first half, while Jacob Murphy and Sean Longstaff also had opportunities as Everton struggled. Dyche’s side competed physically but struggled for any rhythm.

The second half started with Tarkowski deflecting the ball up onto his own bar as Newcastle pushed for the second. They thought they had it when Dan Burn had the ball in the net after a clever free-kick routine but it was ruled out for a narrow offside against Isak.

Dyche made a triple substitution in a bid to change things and was almost rewarded when James Garner, one of those introduced, cut inside and whacked the ball against the inside of the far post. The problem was that this opened the game up for Newcastle too.

Barnes danced past Ben Godfrey out wide and fed Isak whose firm shot looked certain to find the net only for Vitalii Mykolenko to clear off the line. It proved to be a pivotal stop by the Ukrainian defender because Everton were gifted a route back into it.

Dummett had only just come onto the pitch when he manhandled Young inside the penalty box and though it required a VAR check to award the penalty, it was a relatively straightforward decision. All that remained was to see if Calvert-Lewin could hold his nerve.

The striker had not scored in 23 appearances in all competitions and his confidence must have been knocked. But the striker struck the shot firmly and though Martin Dubravka got a hand to it, he could not deny Calvert-Lewin his moment.

Newcastle had conjured a win from nowhere with three late goals against West Ham at the weekend. Here, they dropped two. As for Everton, they are now on a run of 13 without a win – they have not gone 14 since 1937. This still felt like a precious point.

Newcastle are back in Premier League action on Saturday, travelling to Fulham; kick-off 3pm.

Everton are also playing on Saturday, host Burnley at Goodison Park; kick-off 3pm.