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.
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).'
newcastle can beat juventus???
