Barnes Scores Two Goals as The Magpies Overcome Benfica and Mourinho

When the Benfica manager came at Newcastle's stadium and praised Newcastle's coach and his squad, home supporters feared a difficult match. However those worries disappeared due to a goal from Anthony Gordon and a brace from substitute the forward, making sure Benfica's new manager did not inflict pain for Howe's team.

Game Flow and Initial Action

The Benfica boss had forecast that the home side would be very physical, but his own team displayed their own aggressive style. Benfica certainly enjoyed breaking up the Magpies' initial attempts to build a smooth attacking rhythm.

Adding to Newcastle's challenges, two players, Tonali and the Brazilian, started on the bench as they were recovering from sickness and a knock respectively.

Before the start, the coaches shared a perfunctory, reserved embrace, and it quickly became clear that the Benfica coach had told his team to subdue the crowd by delaying Newcastle and lowering the temperature at every chance.

Key Moments and Decisive Actions

The visitors' tactic yielded varied outcomes, but when Anthony Gordon and the Newcastle attack succeeded to break through the backline, they initially struggled to generate good opportunities.

Additionally, Benfica's Belgian attacker Lukebakio almost showed scoring skill when, after beating the defender on the ground, he forced Nick Pope with a tremendous shot that got an excellent one-handed save. It's no surprise the goalkeeper retains hope for an national team recall in time for the World Cup.

But when the winger directed another shot off the woodwork, the home side woke up. Jacob Murphy fired off target, and Anatoliy Trubin made an excellent near-post stop from Guimaraes before Gordon at last broke the scoreless tie.

Gordon's blazing pace had created problems for Mourinho all night, and he neatly slotted the first goal past Trubin after Murphy's early ball into the box proved effective.

When the Magpies' hard, high press was not anticipated by the opposition, Jacob Murphy, chosen over £55m Anthony Elanga, was available to pass a ground cross across the goal for the winger to finish.

Later Stages and Decisive Substitutions

Right from the start, the Portuguese team could not be accused of parking the bus and seeking a point, but now their side pushed forward with real abandon. Lukebakio repeatedly displayed an ability to unsettle Howe's defense, and the Magpies were probably relieved to reset at the break.

The opening period ended with the keeper again saving his team by diverting the attacker's shot around the post, and as the sides emerged for the next period, everything seemed finely balanced.

If Gordon, clearly buoyed by netting his fourth strike in three European appearances this campaign, played with the determination of a winger aiming to shift the power balance in Newcastle's favor, the Benfica attacker had other plans.

The manager's No 11 had previously shown that, while Dan Burn is a fine centre-back, he is not a natural full-back, and home hearts were in mouths every time he moved forward.

Howe might have felt easier had Miley, deputising for Sandro Tonali, not directed a corner over the crossbar from a good position. Instead, this absorbing game continued to swing from one goal to the other, persuading Newcastle's coach to introduce the midfielder and Barnes in place of Ramsey and Jacob Murphy.

Mourinho, at the same time, threw on an additional forward in Franjo Ivanovic. This would perhaps prove a gamble that backfired.

Barnes Seals the Match

Before that, the away team, and in particular their Portuguese back Silva, had done a fine job in restricting Woltemade's room and pushing Newcastle's Germany striker back. But now, with right-back Amar Dedic substituted, the defense was weakened, and the path was open for Harvey Barnes to show that Gordon is not the manager's only goal-scoring wide player.

Newcastle's two changes was already paying off by the time the goalkeeper dispatched a superb long throw in Barnes's path. When Silva, on this occasion, misread the bounce, Barnes was away, sprinting into the penalty box before maintaining impressive poise to fire a sublime shot past the keeper.

After Harvey Barnes slid a low effort through unfortunate the goalkeeper's feet after receiving Gordon's excellent pass, it was finished. The Benfica manager had warned that the Magpies have several quick wide attackers, and three goals from two wide men had shattered his chances of securing the team's first Champions League points of the campaign.