Barnes Scores Twice as The Magpies Defeat Benfica and Jose Mourinho
As the Benfica manager came at Newcastle's stadium and praised Eddie Howe and his squad, local fans feared a difficult match. However such worries disappeared thanks to a strike from the winger and two more from replacement Harvey Barnes, ensuring Benfica's new manager did not inflict pain for Newcastle.
Match Dynamics and Initial Action
Mourinho had predicted that the home side would be extremely aggressive, but his Benfica players showed their similar combative style. The visitors clearly enjoyed breaking up the Magpies' early attempts to establish a fluent attacking rhythm.
Compounding Newcastle's issues, two midfielders, Sandro Tonali and the Brazilian, began on the bench as they were convalescing from illness and injury respectively.
Prior to the start, the coaches exchanged a perfunctory, cool embrace, and it quickly became apparent that the Benfica coach had instructed his team to quiet the home fans by delaying Newcastle and lowering the intensity at every chance.
Key Events and Decisive Actions
The visitors' strategy yielded mixed results, but when Gordon and his teammates managed to dismantle the defensive barricades, they initially found it hard to create clear opportunities.
Moreover, Benfica's Belgium winger Dodi Lukebakio almost demonstrated how to finish when, after leaving the defender on the ground, he forced Newcastle's keeper with a tremendous strike that required an excellent single-hand save. It's no surprise the goalkeeper retains hope for an national team recall in time for the global tournament.
Yet when the winger hit another attempt off the post, the home side woke up. Jacob Murphy fired off target, and Benfica's keeper made an impressive close-range stop from Bruno Guimaraes before Gordon finally broke the deadlock.
Gordon's scorching pace had created problems for Mourinho all evening, and he neatly side-footed the opener past the goalkeeper after Murphy's quick ball into the box proved effective.
When the Magpies' intense, high press was not anticipated by Benfica, Murphy, chosen over the expensive signing, was there to deliver a low ball across the face of goal for Gordon to polish off.
Later Stages and Match-Winning Substitutions
From the beginning, the Portuguese team could not be blamed of parking the bus and playing for a draw, but now their side attacked with total freedom. Lukebakio consistently displayed an ability to unsettle Howe's defense, and the home team were probably grateful to regroup at the break.
The opening period concluded with the keeper again rescuing his team by tipping Lukebakio's left-foot wide of the goal frame, and as the sides came out for the second half, everything seemed evenly balanced.
If Gordon, clearly boosted by netting his fourth goal in three European appearances this season, played with the determination of a winger set to alter the power balance in his team's direction, Lukebakio had other ideas.
The manager's No 11 had already shown that, while Dan Burn is a capable central defender, he is not a natural left-back, and Newcastle fans were in mouths every time Lukebakio moved forward.
The Newcastle manager might have felt easier had Miley, filling in for Tonali, not headed a set-piece over the bar from a well-placed spot. Rather, this thrilling contest continued to swing from end to end, persuading the manager to introduce the midfielder and Harvey Barnes in place of Jacob Ramsey and Murphy.
Mourinho, at the same time, threw on an extra forward in Franjo Ivanovic. This would arguably prove a gamble too far.
Harvey Barnes Seals the Match
Until then, the away team, and especially their Portugal defender Silva, had performed a good job in limiting Nick Woltemade's space and forcing Newcastle's German centre-forward back. But now, with defender Dedic substituted, the backline was weakened, and the way was open for Barnes to prove that Anthony Gordon is not the manager's only attacking wide player.
Newcastle's two changes was already paying off by the time the goalkeeper sent a wonderful long throw in Barnes's direction. When Silva, on this occasion, misjudged the flight, the winger was clear, sprinting into the penalty box before maintaining commendable poise to lash a sublime strike past the keeper.
When Barnes rolled a low effort through unfortunate Trubin's feet after meeting Gordon's stellar pass, it was finished. Mourinho had warned that the Magpies have four very fast wingers, and three goals from two wingers had shattered his chances of earning the team's first European result of the campaign.
