LEJEUNE’S LAST-GASP DOUBLE STUNS CARLO
STEVE BRUCE held out his hand to Carlo Ancelotti and rather sheepishly offered words to break the ice at the final whistle. Everton’s manager appeared to be in a trance, as he tried to digest minutes 93 to 95 of a game that defied logic. Bruce knew deep down it was pointless to make small talk but, a short while after, Ancelotti met his counterpart in the corridors of Goodison Park.
‘He reminded me that he was 3-0 up in a European Cup final once,’ Bruce said, not needing to remind anyone of the date or venue. ‘In football these things can happen. We’re good in injury time, aren’t we?’
Bruce has seen many things during his long career — and is no stranger to dramatic late goals — but this took some beating. His reaction told you Newcastle had been second best until the final throes of injury time but somehow escaped with a point.
Everton had been in cruise control. A first goal in English football for Moise Kean and a fine finish from England hopeful Dominic Calvert-Lewin put them there, and the manner of it pleased Ancelotti. But in the space of 102 madcap seconds, deep in added time, substitute Florian Lejeune profited from defensive melees to score two goals — his first in black and white — and leave Ancelotti looking at his defenders in bewilderment. Careless doesn’t begin to explain what Everton did. This was vandalism.
‘There are things in football that are unpredictable,’ said Ancelotti. ‘Until their first goal, no one could think they could draw the game. We played well but you have to accept the result. Sometimes things happen that you cannot control.’
To Newcastle’s credit, they never gave up and Everton showed signs of arrogance and naivety — a dreadful combination.
Bruce’s men threw everything forward in search of a consolation and the gamble, aided by some poor goalkeeping from Jordan Pickford, paid dividends.
How this story ended up being about Newcastle, who have completed the loan signing of Nabil Bentaleb from Schalke, still takes some explaining.
It should have been about Kean, the young Italian whose smile lit up this contest when he ended his 22-game wait to score. His enthusiasm struck a chord with fans always prepared to back those who work hard. The cheers that greeted a flying header to clear a corner, along with a shoulder-barge on Matty Longstaff shortly after, could not have failed to lift his spirits. What really helped, however, was the goal. It was a fine strike, showing great poise to control a pass from Bernard before steadying his feet and sliding his finish under Martin Dubravka.
‘He is young and has to improve technically and tactically but he is in the right way,’ said Ancelotti. When Kean ( right) took his seat on the touchline in the 70th minute, three points seemed certain as by that point
Calvert-Lewin’s smart finish from Lucas Digne’s pass had seen Everton take control. That, however, was until the twist. If it was careless to concede Lejeune’s first strike, a dramatic overhead kick, the second was lamentable. Not that a delighted Bruce was complaining. ‘The one thing they didn’t do was give up,’ he said, toasting the point with a glass of water. ‘Somehow they have got a reward. I can’t fault their spirit.’