Three decisions Eddie Howe got right in Newcastle’s win against Athletic Bilbao
Newcastle emerged with a 2-0 win against Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday night to keep up their strong Champions League form.
Dan Burn gave Newcastle the lead on home turf early on as he met Kieran Trippier’s free-kick with a thumping header across the goal that caressed the post before going in.
Athletic soon hit the woodwork twice in quick succession, while Nick Woltemade then spawned a fine chance to double the hosts’ advantage with a missed header.
Joelinton did make it 2-0 after the break after smart wing-play from Harvey Barnes, and Newcastle held on for the win against Bilbao despite the visitors pushing to score late in the game.
Football Insider have looked at three decisions that Eddie Howe got spot-on to help his side to victory on Tyneside.
Started Harvey Barnes over Jacob Murphy
Anthony Gordon suffered an injury against Bilbao as he was taken off just before the break with what looked to be another hip issue after playing pretty poorly.
He was not missed by Howe’s men, though, as Barnes repaid Howe’s faith with a fine showing which he capped off with a great assist to set Joelinton up and seal the victory.
Barnes was a constant threat down the right before being taken off for Murphy, and the manager’s decision to hand him only his second start in his last 11 appearances.
Started Bruno Guimaraes despite training scare
Injury woes keep cropping up for the Magpies, with star man Bruno Guimaraes a doubt prior to the match after he was missing from their open training session on Tuesday (4 November).
Guimaraes was fit enough to play from the off against their Basque opponents, though, and Howe’s somewhat risky decision to start him was justified by a top showing in the middle of the park.
The Newcastle captain was the most accurate passer to play more than 45 minutes (94% accuracy), while he created a chance, won four of his six duels and won two fouls on a relatively comfortable night.
Used all five substitutes amid ongoing injury concerns
Newcastle’s aforementioned injury scares have not only limited to Gordon and Guimaraes, with William Osula ruled out of the game despite being named on the bench as he pulled out in the warm-up with an ankle issue.
Tino Livramento and Yoane Wissa remain sidelined, while Burn went off on the hour mark against Bilbao for precautionary reasons after going down with some sort of injury that meant he couldn’t carry on.
It was vital, then, for Howe to use his full complement of five substitutes to give his fringe players some more game-time in case they need to play bigger roles in the weeks to come.
Burn and Gordon’s injuries meant Murphy and Lewis Hall had to come on, but it was also smart to bring Lewis Miley, Anthony Elanga and Jacob Ramsey on too as they aim to compete for places going forward.