On a night when two penalties were awarded, probably the most blatant was missed as Newcastle United slumped to a 4-2 defeat to Liverpool.

The Magpies were not good enough on New Year's Day, as they made it three defeats in a row in the Premier League and extended their horrendous run of form at Anfield.

Eddie Howe's side certainly did not deserve to win, nor did their performance really warrant a point either. However, there were a couple of key incidents that went against Newcastle that ended up having a huge impact on the game.

The one that everyone is talking about is the Diogo Jota dive. The Liverpool forward conned the ref to win a penalty when the score was 3-2, with Mo Salah giving the Reds a two-goal lead from the spot and putting the result beyond doubt.

It was a blatant act of cheating, and robbed Newcastle the chance of a grandstand finish after Sven Botman had clawed a goal back.

But while Anthony Taylor awarded that penalty despite Jota clearly diving, he opted against giving Newcastle a chance from 12 yards when Sean Longstaff was taken out in the box.

The 26-year-old found space in the area and chested down a pass from Anthony Gordon, only to be wiped out by Wataru Endo. The referee waved play on, as Liverpool went up the other end of the pitch and made it 2-1 courtesy of a Curtis Jones tap in.

Jamie Carragher delivers verdict on Newcastle penalty appeal After seeing the replay, it looked like Longstaff maybe should have been given a penalty. However, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher has explained why he thinks the referee opted against pointing to the spot.

MORE NEWCASTLE STORIES

"I think the problem is the ball actually runs away from Longstaff," he said.

"Longstaff doesn't actually appeal too much which is very strange."

Carragher later added: "There's definitely contact. Endo has no clue where Longstaff is. I think if Longstaff controls that right on his foot to almost finish, I think there's a great chance it gets given. At times, referees and certainly VAR won't get involved if a referee hasn't give it when the ball has got away from them."

However, he is clearly wiped out by Endo. When you compare it to the two penalties that Liverpool got, it is the most blatant of the lot.

But the fact that his control wasn't perfect worked against Longstaff, and is probably what led to a penalty not being awarded. While he was taken out, he was not in control of the ball. He was not denied a goalscoring chance, as he no longer had possession.

However, it does look like a harsh decision when you compare it to the two penalties that Liverpool got.

Had Newcastle been given a spot kick, they would have had the chance to go 2-1 up. That could have set the Magpies on their way to a very unlikely victory.

Instead, they fell to another defeat and must now dust themselves down ahead of Saturday's Tyne-Wear derby against Sunderland.