Sandro Tonali gave Newcastle United liftoff on Saturday by scoring the opener against Aston Villa, but the goal was not all about him.
While the 23-year-old did brilliantly to burst into the box and score on his debut, the goal was made possible by Anthony Gordon.
It was the Toon winger who provided the cross. He did really well to combine with Joelinton before getting the ball in the box with his left foot. The delivery was fantastic as Tonali connected with it perfectly to make it 1-0.
Gordon and Tonali combined to give Newcastle the lead, but Jamie Carragher believes that another Newcastle player actually had a very important role.
Alexander Isak was one of Newcastle’s stars on Saturday, scoring a brace on the opening day of the season. However, Carragher also believes that he influenced Tonali’s goal.
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Jamie Carragher notices tiny detail about Sandro Tonali’s goal vs Aston Villa
Carragher spoke on Monday Night Football on Sky Sports Premier League, and highlighted what Isak did just seconds before Tonali scored his goal.
“Just keep an eye on Isak,” he said.
“I think he knows Tonali is coming. I want you to look at that right leg from the striker. I think he has seen out the corner of his eye, how he is coming.
“He is trying to block Tyrone Mings and open this space for Tonali to come in. Brilliant!”
Very clever from Alexander Isak
At the time, it looked like the cross looped over Isak’s head, only for Tonali to ghost in behind and score with a volley.
However, on closer inspection, it looks like Carragher is right. Isak makes no effort to score with his head, despite Gordon’s cross being at a decent height for him.
Instead, he tussles with and occupies Mings, stopping the Villa defender from clearing the ball away. That then led to Tonali meeting the cross and scoring his first ever Newcastle United goal.
It looks like what Isak did was intentional. The only debate then is was it a planned goal that Newcastle had worked on in training, or was it pure instinct from the Swedish striker.
Either way, it resulted in a goal and kicked off an incredible day for the Magpies. Eddie Howe’s side went on to win 5-1, and are top of the Premier League after week one.