AS WEEKS go, it was one Alan Shearer will want to forget.

Left out of the starting line-up, against his own wishes, for Newcastle's midweek Carling Cup defeat at home to First Division West Brom, the last thing he needed on Saturday was a confrontation with the goalkeeper who can now justifiably claim to be his Nemesis.

Thomas Sorensen heaped the greatest humiliation on Shearer with the penalty save that won Sunderland the Tyne-Wear derby in November 2000.

As if that memory wasn't painful enough, Shearer awoke yesterday morning to the realisation that it was Groundhog Day.

It had, indeed, happened all over again; same time (near enough), same place.

In the 80th minute - just three minutes earlier than the spot-kick save he made from Shearer nearly three years ago - and at the Gallowgate End, Sorensen replicated the feat, once again diving to his left to beat away a less-than-assured attempt from the Newcastle skipper.

A measure of Shearer's misery on Saturday night was the hasty exit he made within half an hour of the final whistle.

With ten goals to his name - half of which came from the spot - it hadn't been a bad season for Shearer until last Wednesday.

His omission from the side Sir Bobby Robson sent out against West Brom caused consternation among Geordie fans, who have already seen their team's firepower reduced by the loss of knee injury victim Craig Bellamy.

As it turned out, their fears were well founded, but Robson - bristling with indignation in the face of criticism from fans and pundits alike - was unrepentant.

And on Saturday, the Magpies' manager was at pains to explain his reasoning and play down any suggestion of a rift with Shearer.

"There's no simmering row between us,'' said Robson.

"I said to Alan on Monday: 'I'm not going to play you.' He said: 'I'd like to play,' but I said: 'No'. We had Villa, Basel in the UEFA Cup on Thursday, Chelsea on Sunday - all big matches.

"We didn't need Alan the other night and I thought the rest would do him good.''

The evidence, on both counts, suggests otherwise. Newcastle have seen one trophy trail run cold and Shearer has fluffed a potentially match-winning opportunity which could prove crucial in the final Premiership analysis.

Robson, however, has sympathy for his captain and refuses to attach any blame for the penalty failure. "He's his own master where penalties are conerned - he's taken far more than I have and with far more success,'' said Robson.

"Occasionally, I speak to him about penalties, but he knows far more than I do about them and I leave them to him. He feels worse than anyone.''

The feeling of dj vu didn't end there.

The result of this game was a repeat of last season's encounter here.

It was also Gareth Barry, who conceded the free-kick from which Nolberto Solano scored the opener for Newcastle last term, who gave away the penalty when he handled in an aerial duel with Shearer.

And again Villa's goal came from the head of old warhorse Dion Dublin. This time, though, he put his side in front in the 11th minute, outwitting the Newcastle defence too easily to meet Barry's left-wing corner.

Sorensen set the tone in his contest with Shearer when he pulled off a miraculous save to tip over a flying header.

But it was Laurent Robert, with his fifth goal in six starts, who levelled in first-half stoppage time with a crisp strike following Peter Whittingham's half-clearance.

Robson, exasperated so often by Robert's fickle form, believes the penny has finally dropped with the Frenchman.

Robert, who scored against West Brom, was withdrawn in extra-time in that game to make way for Shearer.

It was another decision that puzzled fans, but Robson, warming again to the theme of team selection, stressed: "Laurent was taken off on Wednesday because he was bushed.

"We knew it would have been an advantage to have him and Alan on together, but we couldn't do that.

"We're pleased with Laurent, but if he isn't scoring goals and putting balls into the middle, he isn't worth his place. His attitude is more dynamic now - we've finally got through to him.''

Robert was at the centre of the other major incident in Saturday's game - the 72nd-minute sending-off of Gavin McCann.

Sorensen's save added lustre to the Sunderland link after McCann, who likewise quit Wearside for Villa in the summer, picked up a second yellow card for bringing down Robert.

McCann's first card resulted from a touchline clash with Lee Bowyer.

And the former Black Cats midfielder completely lost the plot when he was dismissed as he confronted Bowyer and also had a go at the Newcastle bench.

Bowyer, it seems, is rediscovering the combative nature of his game, and Robson said: "He's doing very well.

All he has to do now is improve his shooting. He needs to do what he did at Leeds, and start scoring one or two goals.''