Andy Brassell on a disjointed night for Manchester United:

Rangnick speaks!

Here’s Louise Taylor’s match report.

Sean Longstaff and Joelinton speak.

SL: On the balance of the game I think we deserve the three points. Tonight was what St James’ Park is all about. We played well and created a lot of chance.s and it’s about taking it into chances. We know how good he is. I think the disrespect he gets is a disgrace, he’s always the best player in training, ask anyone at the club. Everyone rates him so highly, you realise how good he is. I am so happy for him.

J: It’s a new position, and I always try to give everything for the team. It was an unlucky result, and we have to be proud of the game and keep going and take the positives. I try to give everything, I underysnmad what [Eddie Howe] asked for me to do.

Newcastle now face an anxious wait on the fitness of Wilson, Saint-Maximin and Schar. They play Everton on Thursday and Southampton on Sunday and the chances of any of them featuring look decidedly low.

The table makes grim reading for both teams.

John Davis sums it up so well: “As a Newcastle fan, this has swung between absolute certainty we wouldn’t go down and marvelling at how Howe has re-invented Joelinton (and re-invigorated Shelvey) to resignation now the two players we can’t afford to lose (Wilson, ASM) have gone off with muscle pulls. And that? Almiron gets a shot on target for the first time in two years and de Gea does that?”

90+6 min: And that’s it, the points are shared at full-time.

90+5 min: Cavani goes down, and Manchester United want a free-kick. But he was offside. Relief for the home team. Eddie Howe and Jason “Jason” Jason Tindall giving it big hand signals on the sidelines. Amanda Staveley looks pensive in the stands.

90+4 min: Blood and sand! Dubravka drops the ball at the feet of Sancho. Cavani’s chip is hacked away. What a game it’s been. Low on quality, high on drama.

90+3 min: Another Newcastle injury as Schar looks to twang his hammy trying a diagonal long ball. Oh Eddie, oh no.

90+1 min: There’s six minutes added, even if the stadium announcer initially says four. It’s that exciting. There’s a call for a handball after Joelinton smashed it into Varane’s hand, in a natural position, whatever that is.

89 min: Bruno redeems himself by clearing the ball as Newcastle push for a winner. He needed to do something. Newcastle look the livelier and more likely to score.

88 min: Oh Newcastle! Bruno, who has been hopeless all evening, gives the ball away lazily. Murphy hits the post and then Almiron forces a great save from De Gea. It would have been a deserved winner.

87 min: Almiron presses Telles into a mistake. Weren’t Manchester United supposed to be the pressing team now? Little sign of it tonight.

86 min: Ronaldo is caught whingeing after a bad pass fails to reach him.

85 min: All to play for, and Manchester United play it around. Now there’s no Saint-Maximin to chase them down they seem a tad more relaxed.

83 min: The physio makes the sub signal and Saint-Maximin will take no further part. Eddie Howe does not appear to be a lucky manager. On comes Dwight Gayle. Alan Shearer, in artisan pompadour hat, looks nervous in the stands.

82 min: Ronaldo and Dalot link down the right, and the cross goes to Cavani. At the other end, Saint-Maximin has pulled up. It’s another calf problem. And that’s it for him, and maybe for a while. With Wilson, that’s a bitter blow.

80 min: The home fans are singing for their team, more in hope than expectation now. Though there’s always a chance with this Manchester United team. There’s a brief glimpse of Ronaldo, who has been in absentia since Cavani changed the focus of the attack.

78 min: Scott McTominay, his left boot removed, limps off as Nemanja Matic comes on for Manchester United.

77 min: Longstaff’s pass to Murphy sets up an attack that De Gea smothers, and Manchester United try to go again. This time, Cavani doesn’t get to it.

76 min: Cavani close again. Telles speeds on to a Rashford ball and it finds the Uruguayan at the back post but his scooped finish doesn’t reach its target. Newcastle are tired.

75 min: Off goes Ryan Fraser, on comes Miguel Almiron, who will add more buzz to that speedy Newcastle attack.

73 min: Manchester United push for more. Newcastle flagging after all that effort. Cavani, despite that goal, is doing some whingeing of his own. He wants more.

72 min: Saint-Maximin, fired by the injustice of that equaliser, sets off one of his runs and forces another De Gea save. Manchester United may be level but they are still highly vulnerable.

69 min: This has been as bad a Manchester United performance as any under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and if that situation needed to change then so still does the attitude of their players. Their reaction to this scoreline has been to act like spoiled children.

67 min: Murphy, who has been lively since replacing Callum Wilson, sends the ball past the Manchester United post. De Gea watches it go by. Then Maguire is booked for a foul on Saint-Maximin. Maguire has been having one of his games.

65 min: A save from De Gea from Saint-Maximin again. Bruno Fernandes is booked for dissent. Manchester United, a rabble.

63 min: Fernandes’s pass into the Newcastle box sets up a counterattack and Fraser forces a save from De Gea. Joelinton carries the ball all the way. The home fans demand a penalty and then watch Rashford get a glimpse of a chance at the other end. It’s end to end, breathless stuff. The quality is low but the intrigue gets higher.

61 min: Great enjoyment from the home fans as Rashford skews the ball in the fashion that you might see from Boris Johnson in a charity match. It was honestly that bad. Manchester United have been atrocious.

59 min: Long pass to Rashford, but hit too long. Seems the Rangnick plan features some good, old-fashioned “get it launched”.

57 min: Ronaldo is booked, after he clatters Fraser. He is perhaps lucky that, like everything else tonight, he missed his target. Petulant stuff from Him.

56 min: The aforementioned Maguire attempts a long pass from defence. And then has to be chased down by Jacob Murphy. Oh, the indignity.

55 min: Toon roars as Dalot is hounded down by Saint-Maximin, and even more when Cavani, in a typically good position, spoons a Sancho cross wide.

54 min: Asha tweets in: “I hadn’t considered how much of a problem Harry Maguire is to Man Utd. He’s captain and emblematic of everything Man Utd right now. Moments of good play, moments of bad play and an absolute whinge-bag.”

53 min: Bruno Fernandes dropping deep. He’s not had it easy under this new regime. Sancho meanwhile wallops the ball behind after Manquillo stands him up. That was not good from the new arrival.

52 min: Joelinton is still in his left of midfield shuttling position, essentially an Andy Sinton du nos jours...Ronaldo gets a sighter, as the ball drops to the edge of the box and he whips it wide.

50 min: Another look at that Saint-Maximin chance and it gets no better on second viewing.

49 min: The signs of that chance is that Ralf Rangnick is yet to plug in his half-time hairdryer, though Fred and Greenwood have already felt his cold shoulder. Meanwhile, Rashford wakes up and his shot fizzes as Dubravka has to make a decent save.

47 min: Oh wow! What a miss. Krafth skips down the right, and the ball comes to Saint-Maximin, who can only shoot at De Gea, who to his credit was in the right position.

46 min: And back away we go. And off goes Saint-Maximin again, who this time gets tangled up in his own legs.

Two Manchester United subs: off go Fred and Greenwood, on come Sancho and Cavani.

On Sky, Gary Neville, who says he is “fuming”, has just called Manchester United’s players “a bunch of whinge-bags”. And he’s right, they have been moaning at each other all night.

The emails are in:

Tom Collins: “Got to say judged purely as a footballer Rashford has plateaued. He’s in danger of being the next Lingard. Not a consistent goalscorer, still yet to really nail down a position. Impromptu West Ham loan on the horizon. Oh the indignity...”

Jake Shaffer: “This match is like one of those bracingly bitter, herbal, dirty tasting “digestive” liquors one is supposed to have following the gluttonous feast of goals and fun football served up yesterday. In many ways, it is a stern reminder that 2021 isn’t over for us yet.”

Mary Waltz: “The constant refrain from the sack ole squad was “Why did you spend all that cash on VDB and not play him. McFred are rubbish, anyone with half a brain would bin that lineup” I understand that complaint but it appears it wasn’t just Ole.”

Stephen Carr: “Evening John. The most intriguing sub-plot in tonight’s game is the competition between Fred and Shelvey to see who can give the ball away the most times. Too close to call at this stage.”

Matt Burtz: “I don’t profess to have an encyclopedic knowledge of pop music, but for my money the two best saxophone riffs belong to “Baker Street” and “Careless Whisper”.”

Peter Oh: “Based on the meagre pickings CR7 and Greenwood have had so far, it sounds like supply chain problems aren’t limited to global shipping.”

Well, yes.

45+4 min: That’s it for the half. It ends with Wilson on the floor rubbing his calf. Nobody was near him when he went down for the original injury. On comes Jacob Murphy for mere seconds.

45+3 min: A dreadful pass from Manchester United’s midfield drifts out. That’s the story of their half.

45+1 min: Four minutes are added on. Joelinton buzzes around again, and Saint-Maximin has a sight of goal that Fred manages to clear. Callum Wilson may not last the four minutes, sadly.

45 min: Uh oh. Callum Wilson is down and there looked to be a twist as he fell. He looks in great pain, and he’s no stranger to such injuries. Nervous moments for everyone here, and even if Newcastle have money, Wilson has a big part to play in their future. He’s up, that’s the good news but he is limping.

44 min: Fernandes has a shot saved from a Ronaldo flick. He should have netted, and is saved by Ronaldo being offside.

42 min: Dalot’s cross smashes into the chops of Joelinton, who is back down on the floor again. He’s been in the wars. His recreation as an all-action midfielder continues apace.

41 min: Rashford fouled, though the home crowd don’t like it. Ronaldo looks surly as he steps up to attempt a free-kick. Fernandes will take, and it finds Ronaldo ghosting through. Dubravka is brave as he clears. Newcastle had gone to sleep.

39 min: Home cheers as Dubravka claims as the ball is launched towards Rashford.

38 min: Newcastle have the ball in the net! Saint-Maximin careered through and Wilson directs it into the net. Offside so the primal roar is quietened. It was well off.

36 min: It is Ronaldo who clears from a corner, and Newcastle then almost grant him the space to set up a counter. At the moment, and this is often the case before preluding genius, he looks as if he put the wrong boots on.

35 min: Another bad pass from Varane and off goes Saint-Maximin, and Maguire comes across to clear. Then the ball comes back to Newcastle and Maguire smashes Callum Wilson over. A free-kick in a dangerous position, from the left of the away team’s box and Telles heads behind.

33 min: The Newcastle fans getting nervy, their team is seeing far less of the ball. Bruno Fernandes loops in in a cross that Krafth almost hands to Ronaldo but the great man swings and misses. Manna for the jeering Toon Army.

31 min: Manchester United pressure building. A Greenwood shot is blocked and Rashford is seeing more of the ball. But it’s still not coming together. Ralf Rangnick looks most unimpressed.

29 min: Greenwood cuts in from the right, and his pass almost finds a speeding Rashford, only for Dubravka to charge out on safari and whack the ball clear.

27 min: Some calm - ish - play from De Gea and Varane at the back. Not much confidence amid that unit at the moment.

26 min: “Eddie Howe’s black and white army” rings out. That sounds very like belief and backing from the fans. Perhaps that and tens of millions may give him half a chance.

24 min: Boos from the Newcastle fans as Sean Longstaff trips McTominay, and the Scot limps off. He was clearly hurt so not sure what all that was about.

23 min: Shelvey drives forward and pings a shot that David De Gea has to punch away. It was spinning all over the show.

22 min: This looks as disjointed as a typical Ole Gunnar Solskjaer match from Manchester United. Their best hope lies in a Newcastle mistake.

20 min: Joelinton is back up for now. They are taking their time over him. Rashford wins another corner when smashing it against the first defender. His team have not scored from a set piece all season. Telles takes again, and Bruno Fernandes, who has been anonymous, hooks the ball to nobody.

18 min: Telles takes the corner and it is cleared. Joelinton is back down again, and looks to be in some distress.

17 min: Jeers from the home fans but Ronaldo almost got on the end of a ball into the Newcastle box. Rashford then forces a corner.

16 min: Gary Naylor is in: “They talk about PlayStation players, but Allan Saint-Maximim is a Playground player. Nobody communicates the joy of simply playing the game more than the scampering Frenchman.”

15 min: A brief moment of panic when McTominay almost cuts off a Dubravka pass to Shelvey. Then Dalot, getting through plenty of work, gets to the byline. Newcastle clear it. Ronaldo goes down but no dice from the referee and lots of boos greet the great man.

13 min: Cristiano Ronaldo has got his face on. He, Greenwood and Rashford have not looked on the same wavelength at all.

12 min: Close! Joelinton whips one past the post after being teed up at the edge of the box.

11 min: Newcastle are quick on the counter, and as a Rashford flick comes to nothing, they speed away, only for a flag to haul them back. They could do with another. Surely Manchester United can’t stay this bad? (They probably can.)

10 min: The Newcastle fans fancy this. Manchester United are there for the taking, and look thoroughly disorganised, and lacking creativity.

8 min: We were treated to a shot of Amanda Staveley celebrating there. She really enjoyed that moment, as did Eddie Howe. Raphael Varane, not so much. That was play out of the Harry Maguire playbook.

6 min: Shelvey upends Ronaldo, who had pressed him into a mistake. Are you watching, Jonathan Wilson? Dalot, in the team on merit, aims a cross into the box from a Fred pass. Dubravka claims it with some ease.

5 min: Eddie Howe giving it plenty of clapping on the sideline. It’s quite a fashionable move these days. Pep Guardiola, Marcelo Bielsa and Antonio Conte are all proponents.

4 min: Joelinton goes down. Is he ill? Did he get a kick to the goolies? The latter seems to be the case.

3 min: Harry Maguire seems to fall asleep and Ryan Fraser skids away with the ball, only for his cross to be cleared. Eddie Howe’s team pushing up and pressing hard.

1 min: After the players take the knee, Craig Pawson the referee gets the game underway after a retake. Yes, a retake. Looks like Marcus Rashford is playing deeper, with Ronaldo and Mason Greenwood up front.

Mark Knopfler’s Local Hero rings out, a song that ends all too suddenly, all too soon. Whatever happened to the saxophone in popular music?

The teams make their way to the pitch to the sound of Carmina Burana. This is a big game for both teams even if the match has lost the lustre of decades past.

Keith Barclay emails in: “Two sub goalies for Newcastle has to be quite unusual even for these Covid times: Woodman and Gillespie?”

And they have only named eight subs. Perhaps one of them will do a David James.

Feels like this is an issue for both teams playing tonight. Mind, you, it’s an issue for everyone at the moment.

The League can today confirm that between Monday 20 December and Sunday 26 December, 15,186 COVID-19 tests were administered on players and club staff. Of these, there were 103 new positive cases,” the league said in a statement.

The figure has steadily increased in recent weeks with 42 cases between December 6-12 and 90 testing positive between December 13-19. The Premier League has had 15 games postponed so far due to Covid-19 outbreaks at various clubs.

Eddie Howe speaks to Sky, too.

Massive occasion, massive game, a historic game in the past. We are looking to create those memories for us and create a good feeling for our supporters. We are looking for any game to be transformative. Together we need to put it together and deliver a complete performance. We have a mix of injuries and Covid cases. We’ve had an eight-day gap so I’m looking for energy and intensity in our place, we should have no excuses for not delivering a physical performance. Hopefully we give a really good account of ourselves. The progress will be defined by the matches. There’s work going on behind the scenes, I can assure everyone of that.

Phil Jones is among those Manchester United subs, while Victor Lindelof and Victor Bailly are both absentees, with the Swede testing positive for Covid. Ralf Rangnick just confirmed that to Sky Sports.

“I would say since last Tuesday or even last Thursday we have had two or three training sessions at a high level. In the last three or four days we’ve had some good training sessions. [On Mason Greenwood] He is definitely playing up front but you will just have to see.

No Anthony Martial or Jesse Lingard in the Manchester United squad, and that suggests January transfers are being borne in mind. Raphael Varane plays for the first time since October. Little surprise that Newcastle make six changes from the team pumped 4-0 by Manchester United, with Saint-Maximin and Wilson partnered up front for the first time since that Burnley win.

United’s past two games – against Brentford and Brighton – were postponed after an outbreak of the virus among Rangnick’s squad that left only eight outfield players available. But with 25 players now in training before Monday’s trip to Newcastle, the German claimed that United’s number of double vaccinated footballers is among the highest in the division.

“I don’t know which of our players have had two or three [the booster] vaccinations. This is a question that only our medical department could answer but I know from our medical department that our ratio of vaccinated players is above the average of the Premier League,” said Rangnick.

“As far as I know we have a high record of vaccination of players in our club, but still in the last two weeks we have been shown that even if you are vaccinated two or three times, you can still catch the virus, especially the new virus. So you are not being protected [fully] but at least you are being protected from severe symptoms – most of our players who tested positive at least had very weak symptoms and didn’t suffer.”

Back then beating Manchester United was not regarded as an exceptional feat by Newcastle fans but Howe’s class of 2021-22 face Ralf Rangnick’s team having won only once all season and in acute peril of relegation.

“There’s a lot of memories that spring to mind of those games in the 1990s and just after,” said Howe. “Newcastle tended, at that period of time, to have memorable games against most teams. There are standout moments you think back to; I can still picture some of the goals and the scenes in my mind.

“It’s up to us to try to recreate those times – the attacking verve, the swagger that Kevin Keegan’s 1990s Newcastle had, the flair the individual players possessed and the team identity. It’s something we’re desperate to do. But we’re going to need a little bit of time to see that in full creation. At the moment, we’re still progressing and we have to obviously get the defensive side of our game right before we transition into the team we all want to be.”