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Just a few minutes after the restart, word got around St. James’ Park that Karim Adeyemi had fired Borussia Dortmund into the lead. With Newcastle United also winning 1-0, the Magpies looked set to progress through to the knockout phase, having been the underdogs from the get-go.
However, disaster struck pretty soon after and by the end of the game, Eddie Howe’s side had fallen to a 2-1 defeat at home against a Milan side that had never really got out of second gear.
In the end, the Geordie outfit limped out of the Champions League despite putting in an excellent shift during the opening 45 minutes. There was one player in particular, though, that struggled throughout the match.
Callum Wilson’s performance in numbers vs PSG
Callum Wilson was back in the lineup for Newcastle on Wednesday night in the Champions League which was his first inclusion in the starting eleven since being taken off at half-time in a 2-0 defeat against Dortmund at the beginning of November with a hamstring problem.
Nevertheless, Wilson struggled to have any real impact on the game despite having numerous chances in and around the penalty area. The ex-Bournemouth man had four attempts on goal, getting two on target which recorded a combined xG of 0.67.
Overall, Newcastle boasted an xG of 2.04 and massively underperformed in front of goal, meaning the experienced frontman contributed towards 33% of his side’s xG. The most glorious opportunity Wilson had came in the 62nd minute. This effort had an xG of 0.45, according to FotMob, and would have put the hosts back in front.
Nevertheless, Wilson wasn’t the worst player on the pitch in a black and white shirt.
Miguel Almiron’s performance in numbers vs PSG
Another player who struggled to have any impact on proceedings was Miguel Almiron. Interestingly, the Paraguayan registered a higher xG than star striker Wilson with 0.76 and missed an incredible 0.59 xG chance in the first half which was blocked by Fikayo Tomori.
After the game, GOAL handed the 29-year-old a 3/10 match rating, the lowest of any Newcastle United player, while labelling him as a ‘painfully limited attacker’, bemoaning his lack of a right foot in critical situations.
Almiron was somewhat of a hindrance to the team during the match, failing to complete a single dribble past Milan’s resolute defenders and losing possession of the ball 20 times throughout his 90 minutes on the pitch. Additionally, he didn’t create any opportunities for his teammates, nor did he even put an accurate ball into the penalty area, according to Sofascore.
This was one of a triple-header of poor performances by the playmaker over the past week.
The £21m signing put in an equally poor, if not worse display against Everton at Goodison Park last Thursday. The former Atlanta United man earned a 4/10 rating for his showing in Merseyside by The Shields Gazette which was followed up by another 4/10 display at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
With players returning from injury, it may be high time for Howe to remove the South American from the starting lineup for now.
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