Rafa Benitez suffered disapointment on his return to Anfield, after his Newcastle side were defeated 2-0 to Liverpool on Saturday evening.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain set up Mohammed Salah to open the goal-scoring for Liverpool, and Sadio Mane fired in a second after the interval.
Liverpool’s first chance came 15 minutes in, Mohammed Salah volleyed a powerful strike from a tight angle, but Martin Dubravka was alert to save at his near post.
Dubravka was then called into action again when Dejan Lovern directed a header at the Newcastle goalkeeper, which was then cleared up by the Newcastle defence.
Salah opened the goal-scoring just before half time. Oxlade-Chamberlain did brilliantly to play the Egyptian through on goal; who then threaded the ball through the legs of Dubravka.
Mohammed Diame looked to equalise before half time, but he saw his swerving effort well-saved by Loris Karius; which was destined for the top left-corner.
Mane grabbed Liverpool’s second 55 minutes in; smashing the ball into the bottom left-corner after Roberto Firmino put the winger through one-on-one.
Jamaal Lascelles was then fortunate not to be penalised for pushing Mohammed Salah from behind in the penalty area in injury-time; drawing frustration from Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
The result means Newcastle drop to 16th place in the Premier League table, 2 points above the relegation zone.
Below are the Newcastle United player ratings, following their 2-0 loss to Liverpool.
Martin Dubravka - 6
Not the busiest of evenings for the Newcastle stopper. Dubravka did not have much chance for the two goals, and was unfortunate to see the first goal go through his legs.
Dubravka was effective in a more sweeper-role than seen in recent weeks, successfully beating Salah to the ball on a couple of occasions.
Paul Dummett - 8
The defender made some crucial blocks and interceptions to keep the score line to a limit. He tracked Liverpool’s wingers well by maintaining a good position.
Florian Lejeune - 7
Alike to Dummett, Lejeune was successful blocking and intercepting dangerous passes from the opposition. It was a solid performance from the Frenchman.
Jamaal Lascelles - 6
Lascelles was effective in keeping Newcastle’s back-line compact and hard to break down.
The skipper was however fortunate not to be punished for a foul on Salah in the closing stages, which could have led to both a penalty and a red card.
De'Andre Yedlin - 6
Kenedy - 5
The winger did well on occasions to beat his man, but he sometimes failed to layoff the ball at the correct times and often ran into trouble.
Mikel Merino - 6
The midfielder was strong in the tackle, and worked hard to win the ball back.
Mohammed Diame - 6
The midfielder was unfortunate to see his effort saved magnificently saved by Karius at 1-0. Diame worked hard, but against Liverpool’s attack, it was always going to be difficult.
Jacob Murphy - 5
The winger’s decision-making was poor at times, and he failed to execute any dangerous deliveries.
Christian Atsu - 6
Atsu worked hard and did well to help double up on Liverpool’s threatening wingers. However, he failed to create any chances in attack.
Dwight Gayle - 5
A frustrating day for the forward. Gayle had to deal with long and high passes throughout, and failed to make anything from it. Gayle did, however, work hard to chase Liverpool’s defence when in possession.