Grimaldo snatches late draw for Leverkusen against Newcastle
Bayer Leverkusen managed to secure a 2-2 draw against Newcastle at home in the Champions League on Wednesday, thanks to an 88th-minute equaliser from Alejandro Grimaldo.
This result prevented Newcastle from climbing into the top eight spots that guarantee a direct entry into the last 16.
Two games remain in the group stage, leaving Newcastle two points short of the top eight and one point clear of Leverkusen, with both teams on course for the play-off round.
Anthony Gordon, who found the net for Newcastle, spoke to TNT Sports about the loss, blaming it on mindset issues. He stressed the need for greater resilience to keep opponents at bay during matches, something elite sides excel at.
He further emphasised the importance of reliability across all aspects of play.
Leverkusen had taken the lead courtesy of an own goal by Bruno Guimaraes, but Gordon restored parity with a penalty kick following a blunder by goalkeeper Mark Flekken shortly after the interval.
Newcastle went ahead when Gordon provided the assist for Lewis Miley, yet Grimaldo, who has shone brightly this term with nine goals and five assists across 19 appearances, delivered the decisive response.
Robert Andrich, the Leverkusen skipper, shared his thoughts with DAZN, noting that his team controlled much of the first half effectively, though they faltered with a needless penalty concession during a lethargic phase.
From the 65th minute onwards, fatigue set in, but Andrich was content overall and believed the draw was justified.
Newcastle will welcome PSV Eindhoven next before travelling to face the current title holders, Paris Saint-Germain, in their concluding fixtures.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, will take on Olympiacos and Villarreal, both of whom are struggling towards the lower end of the 36-team standings.
Hjulmand a late withdrawal
Just 30 minutes prior to the start, Leverkusen learned that manager Kasper Hjulmand would be absent for personal matters.
Nevertheless, his squad opened the scoring in straightforward manner.
At the 13-minute mark, Aleix Garcia delivered a corner towards captain Andrich at the back post, where he outmuscled Sandro Tonali. Andrichs misplaced header ricocheted off Guimaraess back and into the goal.
Leverkusen dominated proceedings by half-time, but a sloppy error from their keeper early in the second half invited Newcastle back into contention.
Nick Woltemade, quiet earlier on, forced Flekken into a mishandled moment by approaching stealthily from behind, resulting in the goalkeeper fouling the Newcastle forward inside the area.
Gordon calmly slotted away the resulting penalty and came close to doubling his tally soon after, striking the upright with Flekken wrong-footed.
The English attacker then orchestrated Newcastles lead on 74 minutes, whipping in a delivery for Miley to rise and nod home.
Once ahead, Newcastle adopted a defensive stance, which enabled Leverkusen to mount sustained attacks.
Grimaldo capitalised with two minutes to spare, connecting with a pass from Ibrahim Maza and firing past Aaron Ramsdales dive.