A few words on yesterday’s friendly that ended Valencia 1 Newcastle United 2.
It was great to get a win against tough La Liga opponents last night.
Here are five positives from Valencia 1 Newcastle United 2:
Getting a win under our belt
A win is a win however they come and it was important for confidence, and the new manager, that the team got off to a good start.
You should never read too much into pre-season results but it’s still better to win than lose, and a good performance was a welcome tonic after the last outing against Bristol City.
After going 1-0 down so early, the players showed great grit and determination (helped by a red card for a horrible tackle on Anthony Elanga) to come back and win the game.
Yoanne Wissa on the scoresheet. Twice!
It would be no exaggeration to say that Yoanne Wissa endured an absolutely dreadful season after his big money move from Brentford last summer.
Injuries didn’t help matters, but I always got the feeling that for some reason Eddie didn’t really fancy him, despite pursuing him for most of the summer. I was really impressed with him during the World Cup, and was cautiously optimistic that we would see a much better Wissa this season.
Therefore it was great to see him bag a couple of goals against decent opponents. If we’re going to have a good season we need Wissa to hit at least double figures.
Keeper situation appears to be sorted
Nick Pope has been a fine servant for us over the last few years but there is no doubt we have been crying out for a new keeper for some time now.
I maintain that this was one of our biggest issues last season.
Pope’s kicking has always been woeful but last season his shot stopping ability deserted him aswell. Aaron Ramsdale looked great with the ball at his feet, but like Pope was weak under a cross and conceded a lot of goals that a more competent goalkeeper would have saved. Ramsdale has been sent packing back to Southampton, while Pope wasn’t even included in the match day squad for last night’s friendly.
Lukas Hornicek is clearly going to be the number one at the start of the season, with fellow new signing Ewen Jaouen as back up, and he looked very assured on his first appearance for the club.
New signings making an impact
It’s early days but there are definitely promising signs from our new signings.
Sean Steur looks so impressive in midfield, always demanding the ball and very comfortable when he has it. He looks like a star.
Bazoumana Toure also looked electric after being introduced after the break, playing a major role in both second half goals.
Photo by Ged from Walker via The Mag
Plenty more to come
While clearly Newcastle United still need strengthening in a number of areas it does feel like the squad might be starting to take shape nicely.
They were hungry and full of energy yesterday, something which was often lacking during the disappointment of last season.
With the season creeping up on us it’s also great to see that we have lots of players to still come back in to the mix, particularly defensively.
Dan Burn has returned early from his post World Cup exploits and is back in training, while Schar, Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento are all still to come back in.