Liverpool were struggling against the odds and second best for much of the game, falling behind to Anthony Gordon’s 25th-minute goal after capitalizing on Trent Alexander-Arnold’s error, then having captain Virgil van Dijk sent off three minutes later for a tackle on Alexander Isak.

Alisson kept Liverpool in it in the first half by amazingly sending Miguel Almiron’s shot on to the woodwork, and the forward again hit the post after the interval, before Uruguay forward Nunez was introduced to stunning effect.

Nunez broke through to shoot past Newcastle keeper Nick Pope with nine minutes remaining, then received Mohamed Salah’s ball three minutes into stoppage time before applying an equally thunderous finish to give Liverpool an incredible victory.

Reactions to Liverpool’s victory over Newcastle United, as well as other Premier League action from Sunday
Liverpool’s victory was a triumph of grit and perseverance because they spent so much of the game outnumbered, out of sorts, and clutching on before suddenly clicking into gear and taking the points.

The starting point has to be goalkeeper Alisson, who made that incredible stop from Almiron when Liverpool was down 1-0, miraculously diverting his powerful strike on to the goal frame. All evidence shows that even Jurgen Klopp’s team would not have recovered from that.

Liverpool altered the game’s emphasis with the arrival of substitutes Diogo Jota and Nunez, positive actions in a very poor scenario that suddenly gave them a threat when it had previously been about survival.

Nunez has been hit and miss since his big-money move from Benfica, but he was all hit here on Tyneside, with that first stunning finish sending shockwaves through St James’ Park, the crowd vibrating with nerves rather than celebration.