Everton's better chances won it; Ramsey's red came at the death

Everton beat Newcastle 1-0 at St James' Park with the sharper chances, while Newcastle had more of the ball and more shots but lost Jacob Ramsey to a red card in the 90th minute.

Jacob Ramsey was sent off in the 90th minute after a second yellow card, leaving Newcastle to see out the final moments with ten men. It changed nothing on the scoreboard, because Everton had already won 1-0. It does change how the rest of the evening should be read, since Newcastle's last moments were played a man short.

Thierno Barry settled the game in the 49th minute, and a VAR review, the video check used for key decisions, confirmed the goal two minutes later. Barry had three shots, one of which went in, and his 8.2 rating was the best of the players listed for this match. Everton's goal came from a striker who was alert in the box rather than from a long period of pressure.

Newcastle had 52% of the ball, which is almost exactly their usual share at home, so possession tells us nothing unusual about the evening. They also had more shots than Everton, 17 to 16, which looks like a dominant display until you look at where the efforts came from. Newcastle's expected goals figure, which scores each chance by how often chances of that kind go in, was 1.51, a little above their home average of 1.35.

Everton's chances were the better ones. Their expected goals figure was 2.18, well above their away average of 0.94, and they had 11 shots from inside the box against Newcastle's seven. They also had five shots on target to Newcastle's two, and most of Newcastle's efforts came from distance, with ten taken from outside the box.

Everton's finishing was not quite as good as their chances, since a figure of 2.18 usually means more than one goal. They scored once and still won, because L. Horníček made four saves for Newcastle and kept them in it while Everton's own goalkeeper, J. Pickford, made two. Newcastle's defence also held better than usual: they conceded one goal at home against an average of 1.8.

Both sides were in the lower half before kick-off. Newcastle are 12th with 11 points from eight matches, and Everton are 14th with 10 from eight. Everton conceded nothing away from home, against a season average of 1.1, which is the cleanest sheet they have kept on their travels.

Newcastle took 17 shots at home, a total above their usual 11.8, and scored none of them. They finish the evening with a point's worth of consolation in the table, but no goals to show for a night of trying.

Player of the matchT. Barry1 goal8.2

K. Dewsbury-Hall3 chances created7.2

J. Branthwaite1 chance created7.1

Joelinton1 chance created7.1