Newcastle United were supposed to kick off their 2025 Premier League campaign with three points, or at least that was the feeling before kickoff. Instead, they walked out of Birmingham with just a single point and, honestly, a bag full of doubts. A 0-0 draw against Aston Villa at Villa Park isn’t the kind of story that sticks in the headlines for long, but this one does tell you something, it says more about the side that couldn’t win than the one that managed to hang on.
The Magpies had an extra man for nearly half an hour. That should’ve been enough. Villa’s defense looked shaky, moments opened up, the crowd felt a goal coming… yet Newcastle still couldn’t do the most basic thing in soccer: score. And without Alexander Isak, left out while talk of Liverpool won’t go away, that absence weighed heavy. It felt like the whole team was dragging an anchor.
Isak out, attack going nowhere
If there was still any debate about how much Newcastle need Isak, Saturday put it to bed. Without the Swedish forward, they had some chances, yes, but no bite, no final punch. Elanga ran his socks off, Gordon kept trying, but when the shots came, they were wasted.
Elanga blew the clearest chance of the first half. Gordon? Either he found Marco Bizot right in front of him or he sent the ball sailing wide. For a club that wants to fight for a Champions League spot again, it all felt… predictable. Too predictable.
Konsa sent off, but nothing really flipped
The game seemed to tilt when Ezri Konsa got a straight red in the 66th minute—he pulled Gordon down as the forward was clear through on goal. Normally, that’s the cue: pressure everywhere, box loaded, the opponent begging for the final whistle. That wasn’t what we saw.
Villa, even with ten, closed down lanes, fought for every ball, and somehow even found the odd counter to breathe a little. Emery’s side didn’t shine, far from it, but they knew how to hold on. And look, considering they went through an entire first half without a single shot (Villa Park hadn’t seen that since 2024), coming away with a point felt almost like a win.
Bizot stands tall on debut
For Villa, Konsa wore the villain’s mask, but Marco Bizot stole the show. Making his Premier League debut, the Dutch keeper came up huge with saves that kept Newcastle out, stopping Gordon, denying Elanga, staying calm when it could’ve gone wrong. He didn’t flinch. He didn’t blink.
That kind of debut matters. It gives Villa fans something to believe in, a reason to think the new guy between the posts might actually be the answer. And on opening weekend, when so much is still up in the air, that’s a pretty big deal.