Gunners edge the Toon 3‑2 in Singapore thriller

Arsenal came back from an early setback to beat Newcastle 3‑2 at the National Stadium in humid conditions in front of nearly forty thousand fans  

Arsenal vs Newcastle live

Newcastle drew first blood after just six minutes when Anthony Elanga scuffed a Sandro Ton ali cross and somehow found the net past David Raya despite the odd finish

Arsenal responded with two quickfire goals just before half time

First Mikel Merino stole possession fed from Havertz and finished coolly to equalise then Alex Murphy turned a Tros sard cross into his own net to hand Arsenal the lead heading into the break  

Early in the second half Jacob Murphy restored parity with a long‑range strike that beat Raya to make it 2‑2  

 

The climactic moment came late when 15‑year‑old Max Dow man came on and danced past defenders to win a penalty from Joe Linton then Martin Ødegaard stepped up in the eighty fifth minute and calmly converted to seal Arsenal’s win  

Standout highlights

• Elanga’s debut goal stunned the crowd despite the scuffed technique

• Merino’s midfield pressure earned his composed opener

• The own goal by Murphy swung momentum just before the break

• Jacob Murphy’s strike showed Newcastle’s resilience

• Dowman’s lively cameo injected energy earned the decisive penalty at fifteen

• Ødegaard’s poise from the spot underlined his captaincy quality  

Player focus

Max Dow man stole the show with his youthful audacity two successful dribbles two shots on target and being the most fouled player tonight Performance earned rave reviews even from Arteta who hailed his composure as extraordinary 

Martin Zubimendi impressed on his start in midfield composure and ball control setting the tone in the first half while Merino added grit and then the all important equaliser 

David Raya came under fire for misjudging Elanga’s opener and later fans called for Keeps Arrizabalaga after another shaky passage leading to doubts over the starting spot 

Viktor Gyökeres was unveiled before the match to massive fanfare though he did not feature on the pitch adding excitement as the club’s new big money signing 

Why it mattered

Arsenal extended their pre‑season unbeaten run with two wins from two matches building momentum ahead of their next tour match against Tottenham in Hong Kong on July  31  

Newcastle showed flashes of promise especially through Elanga and Jacob Murphy but defensive errors and composure issues cost them a chance to claim a result  

Score summary

Minute Scorer Team Score

6′ Anthony Elanga Newcastle 0–1

33′ Mikel Merino Arsenal 1–1

35′ (OG) Alex Murphy Arsenal 2–1

58′ Jacob Murphy Newcastle 2–2

85′ (Penalty) Martin Ødegaard Arsenal 3–2

Final reflection

This friendly felt more intense than usual Arsenal’s blend of experience youth and tactical flexibility shone while Newcastle battled hard but ultimately lacked that cutting edge at critical moments Dowman’s eye catching cameo may just be the most talked about Arsenal debut of pre‑season ⚽

If you would like me to reshape this into fan voice style or include post‑match quotes just say the word!