There was just no need for his second half lunge at Xabi Alonso. The guy has a self-destruct button he constantly presses.

All this added up to another miserable afternoon for caretaker manager Alan Shearer.

“You should have stayed on the telly” chided the Liverpool fans at the end of the comprehensive 3-0 victory.

Shearer could only smile and agree on the touchline.

You’ve got to love Newcastle supporters’ optimism though, even after this.

They’ll still think they can stay up, that they’ve got the best fans in the world and that they are a massive club.

As one wag said, they could pretend the Championship was in fact the Premier League. Cardiff could be Chelsea if you squint and Barnsley’s kit looks a bit like Manchester United’s from a distance.

Going down also means they could actually win something, although they’ll be sad to learn the Anglo-Italian Cup is no longer running.

Or they’ll probably just go through a few managers and even more centre-halves trying to get back up.

Enough sniggering at Newcastle though, they’ll be plenty more time for that during the rest of the season.

For now, let a fringe man have his day.