Connor Southwell delivers his player ratings as Norwich City came from behind to rescue a point at St James’ Park despite a disappointing performance against fellow relegation strugglers Newcastle United.

• Tim Krul - 6

Spent most of the evening as an avid viewer but failed to get enough of a strong hand on Callum Wilson’s spot kick. It wasn’t the homecoming he would have wanted, but was protected well by his defence for the most part. Nearly caught out by Wilson again on the 74th minute.

Distribution was largely okay with no hairy moments as was the case on Saturday but will be disappointed he failed to keep out the penalty.



• Max Aarons - 6

A frustrating evening for the 21-year-old who was marshalled well by former City man Jamal Lewis down the right.

Aarons is operating in a much more conservative and balanced role compared to his instructions under Daniel Farke. One clipped cross in the first half picked out Christos Tzolis but the Greek international's header was blocked by the arm of a Newcastle defender.

Smith felt he didn't progress the ball quick enough.

• Grant Hanley - 6

Relatively quiet night for the giant Scot as he returned to his former club. Enjoyed several wrestles with Wilson and reduced the striker to very little in open play.

Dominant in the air as ever, but some of his distribution was found wanting at points where City were hoping to change the direction of their attack.

• Ben Gibson - 6

Similarly to Hanley, a lot of Gibson’s work was in-possession.

Stepped into midfield well on occasion, there was one neat pass that split the lines and picked out Kenny McLean inside the box. But on the whole his play on the ball was slow but that was owed partly to the little movement in front of him.

Used his experience to get between Allan Saint-Maximin and the ball to win a free-kick in City’s defensive half after the French winger looked to break clear of the former Middlesbrough man. Displayed positive leadership at points and used the ball well.

• Brandon Williams - 6

The on-loan Manchester United man was the pantomime villain in the first-half after the home crowd took exception to some of his theatrics to win free-kicks.

Defended aggressively and provided much-needed width to City’s play as they probed during portions of the first half. His lack of willingness to use his left foot in certain situations does limit City’s attacking phases at different points.

Was replaced by a more attacking-minded full-back in Dimitris Giannoulis in the second period.

• Billy Gilmour - 5

Naive to have his arm in an unnatural position as Fabian Schar met Jonjo Shelvey's corner. The Chelsea loanee had his left arm high above his head, although it did come from close range.

He never shied away and always demanded the ball, but was unable to replicate the levels we saw from him against Southampton in the second half and Wolves. Had a fierce free-kick beaten away by Marvin Dubravka after Ciaran Clark was dismissed.

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• Kenny McLean - 5

Never stopped running but was part of a City midfield who were passive and lateral for large portions of the encounter.

Wasteful in possession at points and lacked composure when he had a sighter of goal just before half-time. A nice turn and pass to find Tzolis inside the area for his chance before the interval.

• Lukas Rupp - 5

Safe in possession without asking any real questions of Newcastle’s deep defensive position. Didn’t move the ball with enough pace or intensity for large periods of the game.

After an impressive cameo against Wolves on Saturday, the German failed to match the high standards he set for himself. With Mathias Normann on the recovery trail, this was an opportunity missed for the 30-year-old.

• Josh Sargent - 4

Failed to impact the game from an attacking perspective and his first touch was loose for many of the passes that found him in promising areas. He was unable to convert Tzolis' cross towards the end of the first half.

Seems to make more of an impact from the bench but has failed to impress in his last two outings. Some decent defensive work in the first-half saw him rob Willock of possession deep on the left side.

Still technically lacking and struggled to make an impact in a City side looking to unlock a stubborn Newcastle defence.

• Christos Tzolis - 4

There is a rawness underpinning everything that the Greek international is doing currently. His positional play requires work but had a couple of sighters of goal during the first half.

Was anonymous for periods of the first half but there were signs of his potential when unleashed in attacking areas. Had a curling effort deflected over the bar after being picked out by Gilmour. Taken off at half-time for Pierre Lees-Melou.

• Teemu Pukki - 6

Was on the periphery at points throughout the fixture, but was sharp enough to catch Ciaran Clark in possession before the Irishman cynically pulled him down.

Struggled to locate space against a compact Newcastle defence, but still had the quality to produce a sublime and lethal finish from Dimitris Giannoulis’ cross to rescue a point for the Canaries. Fifth goal of the season underpins his importance to this Norwich side.

City substitutes:

• Pierre Lees-Melou - 6 (on for Tzolis, 45)

The Frenchman was bright in patches and moved the ball well, but missed a glorious chance in stoppage time that would have secured a vital three points on the road for the Canaries.

• Adam Idah - 6 (on for Sargent, 67)

Encouraging cameo. Some nice touches and build-up to his game, willing to engage in the physical contest but still lacking the nous to locate goalscoring positions. A step forward compared to previous offerings.

• Dimitris Giannoulis - 6 (on for Williams, 73)

Added some balance on City’s left-side and injected some intensity into their attacking phases of play. Excellent composure displayed to pick out Pukki in the box when many would have chased the headlines and gone for goal.