Porto 0-0 Newcastle: Two players stand out as NUFC stay unbeaten for pre-season

Olly Hawkins

A good test against one of the top sides in Portugal and a special occasion for both sets of fans, with over 40,000 turning up to the Estadio do Dragao to celebrate the life of the great Sir Bobby Robson.

Before I talk about the game itself, here’s a clip of the scenes inside the stadium just before kick off:

A brilliant tribute to a truly brilliant man.

Now to the game. It was one that Porto dominated from start to finish, but to come away with a 0-0 draw against such an impressive side shows just how well we defended.

We showed so little going forward, with them dominating the ball and putting pressure on our back four from start to finish, however it was the perfect run out for us with just two weeks left until our opening day encounter with Spurs.

Two players stood out – Martin Dubravka and Jamaal Lascelles – with the former being absolutely outstanding.

We saw what he was capable of during his loan stint from Sparta Prague and tonight’s display showed just what an incredible bargain he looks set to be at just £4m.

He made a number of world class saves in the second half, constantly communicated with the back four and dealt with crosses into the box expertly as well. His reflexes and handling look second to none and with a poor goalkeeper, we’d have probably lost this one two or three zip.

Lascelles was impressive too. Aboubakar and Marega were a real handful up top for Porto but the skipper handled them very well. Cleared our lines on several occasions and made a few crucial last ditch interceptions – blocking one goal bound shot from Aboubakar superbly (see below).

I wouldn’t say he put in a particularly impressive display, but there were promising signs from Diame again, who lead by example in terms of his pressing and energy in midfield. It’s good to see given how contrasting his form was between the start and end of last season!

A hard fought draw and a brilliant test for us at this stage of pre-season – especially when it sounds like we best get used to defending without Florian Lejeune (Rafa confirmed cruciate knee ligament injury tonight!).

Braga next on Wednesday.

RIP Sir Bobby

(Fancy writing for us? Send any articles/ideas over to us at [email protected] & we’ll get back to you!)

About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

View all posts by Olly Hawkins →

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199 thoughts on “Porto 0-0 Newcastle: Two players stand out as NUFC stay unbeaten for pre-season”

  1. Watching Man U against Liverpool and on the advertising boards around the ground they have MLILY. Global Partner of Manchester United! It is a mattress! Man U have a global mattress partner. I knew they had an “Official Tractor” but a Mattress?

    What next?

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  5. That’s about March for Lejeune then Olly.

    Brilliant goal by Shakir. There is nothing better than a miserable Manc.

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  9. Gutted about Lejeune, said we wouldn’t be so lucky with injuries this year but didn’t expect it to start this soon. 🙁

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  10. Interesting that we sell Mitro who our manager doesn’t rate for £22m and the club are allergic to signing anyone over £14m. Strange…

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  11. Dreadful news on Lejeune. He was our best defender after xmas last season. Never noticed Schar playing. Any good anyone? Clark is so poor on the ball and prone to odd mistakes.

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  12. All the more reason to get in Bryan now you would think, frees up Dummett to cover CB if needed.

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  13. Stuart79:
    Interesting that we sell Mitro who our manager doesn’t rate for £22m and the club are allergic to signing anyone over £14m. Strange…

    Cheer up man.

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  14. So Gayle is going to be sold and Rafa has said we will need to replace Mitro. So would be looking at 2 new strikers? Or maybe 1, with an AM? Could be an interesring couple of weeks.

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  15. Woukd still like more cover in defense. Desparately need a left back and probably a right back too?

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  16. How many players have we sold for more than our own transfer record? They like to sell high and buy low. How do the club justify this? We keep getting in relegation battles and get relegated.

    Terrible news on Lejuane. Sonwe need another centre half to cover him. This is why I believe we will be down the bottom struggling. We got a bit of luck last season with injuries and if it goes the other way we’re knacked.

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  17. kimtoon:
    All the more reason to get in Bryan now you would think, frees up Dummett to cover CB if needed.

    My thoughts 100% imo he’s better at c/ b

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  20. Apparently we have made a profit of £13.9m so far this window. How does the “Rafa can have every last penny” work?

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  21. We’re in talks with WBA for Rondon and we want a swap deal for Gayle. So again, we won’t really be any further forward…

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  22. The Lejeune injury really highlights the need for cover. What happens if Shelvey ships a knock like that? If I was Rafa I’d sign Grenier for £3m immediately. He’s got a poor injury record lately but he’s got the same type of game as Jonjo.

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  27. All these are available on a free
    Max Meyer
    Yaya Touré
    Bernard
    Milan Badelj
    Abel Hernández
    Samir Nasri
    Bakary Sako
    Hatem Ben Arfa
    James Morrison
    Claudio Yacob
    Jack Rodwell
    Miguel Veloso
    Glen Johnson

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  28. So if Muto replaces Mitro and Rondon replaces Gayle ? then we are back at needing another forward aren’t we?

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  29. KIM yes really is snowing there and flooding,
    Are forgetting Gayle often breaks down with hammys

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  30. Icedog:
    KIM yes really is snowing there and flooding,
    Are forgetting Gayle often breaks down with hammys

    Ice, can’t see anything about snow mate, says it’s 28c at the mo 😕
    I know what you mean about Gayle but not sure Rondon or Muto are much of an upgrade.

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  32. Strangely, there are stories now saying we’ve missed loaning Kurt Zouma, as he “doesn’t want to come to Newcastle “… what ****… we already loaned Kenedy from Chelsea, and therefore cannot loan another player from them…

    Regarding an Attacking mid, don’t you think that maybe Muto is more that type of player?

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  34.  NUFC Index Retweeted

    Samuel Brown‏ @sammyb9999ipad1 · 1h1 hour ago

     More

    Replying to @NUFC_Index

    There are idiots out there that think this will change. They think Ashley will sell the club. These people are delusional. Newcastle United is but a fraction of the club it used to and could be. It’s an absolute shell. Buying defenders at 3.5m, we paid £4m for w Barton in 1996

    Wow , says it all really . 😳 🙁

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  36. kimtoon:
    seen a video of it for the 27th not today though ice, huge balls of hail !!!

    thats me always behind the times 😆 😆

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  39. Certainly looks like our sell to buy policy is where we are at otherwise the Gayle for Rondon swap wouldn’t happen. It will be a pity to lose Dwight but we now need at least a left back so Dummett can cover centre half and an attacking midfielder. It seems clear that Fatty will not spend any of the TV money so it is what it is.

    If Hayden goes ten we need a replacement for him as well.

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  40. I watched the Sir Bobby Robson documentary last night. Seems really strange that he was sacked. I think there were a few idiot NUFC fans back then that were calling for his head. Looking back, that sounds mental.

    Some very nice words from Gazza but it was a bit worrying. He seemed either drunk or that the past alcohol bouts had affected him. Slurry words.

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  41. Mourinho agrees with me that these friendlies in America were a total waste of time. Man City had even less of their first team here and played their U21s. I didn’t go to the game in Chicago because why would I want to spend $100 to watch a reserve game?

    This is just such a rip-off. Last year was different. In Miami they had all of the Latin fans going wild as Messi played a half. This year, Man U didn’t even have Phil Jones because he had been to the WC.

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-6003361/Jose-Mourinho-delivers-damning-verdict-Manchester-Uniteds-tour.html

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  42. Nobody on here has really said anything about losing Gayle. That only leaves us with Rondon, Muto, Perez and Joselu. Will we buy another striker? Ashley really is holding back funds. Every few hours on Ed’s blog there is a conspiracy theory that Ashley is going to pay off some of his loan and sell the club.

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  43. Eric Sykes:
    Nobody on here has really said anything about losing Gayle. That only leaves us with Rondon, Muto, Perez and Joselu. Will we buy another striker? Ashley really is holding back funds. Every few hours on Ed’s blog there is a conspiracy theory that Ashley is going to pay off some of his loan and sell the club.

    I have Eric

    kimtoon

    July 29, 2018 at 16:16

    So if Muto replaces Mitro and Rondon replaces Gayle ? then we are back at needing another forward aren’t we?

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  44. Eric Playing styles and stats Muto is most like Gayle, whereas Rondon is an upgrade on Joselu. If Rondon does turn up then Joselu is surplus to requirements. I still think we need a third striker to replace Mitro, even though he didn’t play. Of course we could keep young Armstrong rather than loan him out.
    My concrn is that Muto relies on a work permit that he does not automatically qualify for, and Rondon does not have the stats to dramatically improve things, I see him played of the bench the way Joselu was. If we are going with Muto up front on his own Then Is Kenedy, Perez, Ritchie good enough to back him up?

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  45. Oddest window yet, freebie’s , loans and out of contract players. We are behaving like a newly promoted small club ! something is seriously a foot I reckon, how can we be so short of cash ?
    Either he is saving it for jan if we need it or another manager or he’s readying to sell .
    Someone needs to tell him that you don’t get good deals in jan and it may well be too late by then. Also if we go down and he throws the cash at the new coach, how does that make sense ? you have lost PL revenue it’s false economy, he will never learn .

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  46. The EPL money is not quite as simple as all that. If you are in the top 6 you get all the European money and are playing in a different league. If you are relegated, then agreed it is a disaster, the proportions of which depends upon what happens next but if you survive the merit money is not really significant. The difference between 17th and 7th is less than £20m. You have to spend a lot more than that to guarantee top ten placements.
    Assuming Ashley knows that he cannot get into the top 6 He’s not going to spend big on anything other than to ensure that we stay in EPL why should there is no money in it.

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  47. Very interesting point Prem. Whatever he is Ashley’s not daft when it comes to money and he seems to care little for anything else. Fans like the idea of 7th!

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  48. PremAndUp:
    The EPL money is not quite as simple as all that. If you are in the top 6 you get all the European money and are playing in a different league. If you are relegated, then agreed it is a disaster, the proportions of which depends upon what happens next but if you survive the merit money is not really significant. The difference between 17th and 7th is less than £20m. You have to spend a lot more than that to guarantee top ten placements.
    Assuming Ashley knows that he cannot get into the top 6 He’s not going to spend big on anything other than to ensure that we stay in EPL why should there is no money in it.

    Considering we have one of the worlds best managers it’s folly to think we couldn’t get into the top 6 over time and with realistic investment. That’s what Rafa has said his ambition is. He got a bang average squad and team to finish 10th let’s not forget.

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  49. well i think Rondon will be a good signing when you consider the money Rafa has to spend,i was always wary of Gayle when things arent going to well he seems to have bother with his hammys which i think is a *mind*thing,all in all Rondon is a better bet he is a bit of a tough nut for defenders,he was WBA best player when they played at SJP

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  50. Everton have spent 300 million in the last 2 years after they just spunked 45 million on Richarlison. They couldn’t even manage 7th 🙂 That’s insane.

    If you look at Burnley who did finish 7th our squad is as good as theirs. However, they may come crashing back to earth with European football. Pardew got almost everything wrong except when he said that playing in Europe on a Thursday night with a small squad is a recipe for disaster.

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  51. I am hoping that Ashley is saving his money to make a final big splash. If he doesn’t we can wave a long goodbye to Rafa. You would think that after supporting NUFC for more than 40 years that I would know better and that I should just assume the worst as a default position but I just can’t help myself.

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  52. Assuming Gayle for Rondon goes through that leaves us needing at least a left back so Dummett can cover centre half and an attacking midfielder. Of course I would like a 15 goal striker and another true centre half but I am trying to be realistic.

    Also a holding midfielder if Hayden leaves. I actually want him to leave now after seeing his stupid shyte in the Daily Star and his lame excuse of wanting to move back down south. Who would want him though?

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  53. We still need at least 4 players. Ist choice playmaker. Cover for Shelvey and Dummett and a strong DM. That’s assuming Schar is any good.
    Can’t see all that happening in 10 days or so.

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  54. The Chronicle are passing on a report from HITC that NUFC may bid for Danny Drinkwater but he may cost 35 million. Who are HITC? Why are the Chronic passing on such a ridiculous rumour? A loan I could understand but even then he is probably on a very high wage at Chelsea. I just don’t understand why they feel it is their duty to pass on plainly stupid made up shyte.

    We have to throw in Gayle to get Rondon and the Chronic are talking about is spending 35 million on a player. And Drinkwater is 28.

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  55. Last season , Burnley finished 7th on 54 points scoring 36 goals and conceding 39.
    We finished 10th on 44 points scoring 39 goals and conceding 47.
    Not much in our goal differences ( -5 ) but a sizeable 10 points difference.
    Our defense has been improved with the January signing of Dubravka and after watching our defense withstand a relentless onslaught against Porto I can not see us conceding many goals in this coming season.
    We also played that game without Lejeune , and the whole defense except Lascelles was substituted in the second half.
    If we lose Gayle for Rondon then an attacking trio of Kenedy , Muto / Perez, and Rondon should improve our goals tally from last season when we had Kenedy , Gayle / Joselu , Perez.
    Expecting a top 8 finish this season.

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  56. sidekick:
    Last season , Burnley finished 7th on 54 points scoring 36 goals and conceding 39.
    We finished 10th on 44 points scoring 39 goals and conceding 47.
    Not much in our goal differences ( -5 ) but a sizeable 10 points difference.
    Our defense has been improved with the Januarysigning of Dubravka and after watching our defense withstand a relentless onslaught against Porto I can not see us conceding many goals in this coming season.
    We also played that game without Lejeune , and the whole defense except Lascelles was substituted in the second half.
    If we lose Gayle for Rondon then an attacking trio of Kenedy , Muto / Perez, and Rondon should improve our goals tally from last season when we had Kenedy, Gayle / Joselu , Perez.
    Expecting a top 8 finish this season.

    What happens if Shelvey gets injured?

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  57. I just remembered we cant loan Drinkwater. So that makes the story even more stupid even entertaining the thought that Fatty would pay 35 million for a 28 year old failure. Drinkwater only played 12 games for Chelsea last year. Maybe he fell out with Conte but Sarri is all high pressure so I doubt Drinkwater suits his style either.

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  59. Eric
    Schar came on as the replacement for Shelvey against Porto.
    He fit in very well.
    He will be an able replacement for when Shelvey is injured / suspended.

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  60. Sidekick
    without Kenedy and Dubravka we scraped 29 from 28 game just avoiding relegation figures
    With them we got 15 pts from 10 game which projected over a season would be 57pts, which given that everybody else has apparently strengthened significantly whilst we haven’t seems unrealistic. However, looking at Everton who have spent a fortune and achieved just 49 pts. Why not aim for 50pts and 8th. With Rondon & Muto and a few more in it looks doable. Top 6 is never going to happen unless Ashley changes. It took Pardew to achieve that! 😆

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  61. Just read the Archie Brand article – I’d recommend it as very entertaining!

    In a funny way I reckon we probably have strengthened a little although the lejeune injury is devastating and underlines the need for good cover in all positions. Manquillo is not good cover for Dummett and Yedlin as an example.
    Imagine a central midfield of Ki and Hayden or centre backs of Clark and Scar. Unlikely but possible.

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  62. Sidekick – much as I’d like it, Schar is not an able deputy for Shelvey. In any case he’ll now be centre back.

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  65. At the risk of sounding dumb and I know they have a rich owner, but how can Fulham afford such expensive players ? I thought clubs had to spend on players what they earn ? I didn’t think rich owners could buy lots of players when the clubs revenue doesn’t match it anymore.

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  67. PremAndUp:
    FFP is retrospective
    Spend the money, stay up, take the transfer ban.

    Isn’t that a massive risk though Prem? would they get a big fine as well like QPR or only if they drop ?

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  70. We have received over £40m this transfer window. What have we spent? £15m?

    Surely supporters are well within their rights to be asking where the money has gone? Add to this the £10m instalments from Gini and Sissoko that’s £50m plus the £50m that’s estimated from the TV money and that’s a serious transfer kitty. Well it should be anyway…

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  71. Rafa should just sue the *******. He publicly promised the manager “every last penny generated by the club”.

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  73. Mike Ashley has been in talks with House Of Fraser about lending them £50m. Staggering really.

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  74. Good article on Muto, Olly. It sounds like he is a straight up replacement for Gayle. I hope Dwight fires the Baggies back up at the first go because Darren Moore seems like a nice guy and imagine 3 years of Pulis Ball followed by Pardew! It also should be interesting to see how Rondon does for a Manager that doesn’t necessarily just want to escape with a 0-0 or sneak a 1 nil.

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  75. Stuart: is Ashley being too clever for his own good? Unless there is a big splash then it looks like he is keeping the money and forcing Rafa out. There is every chance we could be bottom 3 after 8 games and then the locals may get even more restless. If we then don’t spend in January I can see a bloody mutiny as he will probably have to pay off part of his loan to avoid taxes. I think it works that way, that if he pays back the loan that reduces profit, but he also has a loss carry forward.

    Ashley may be keeping his powder dry for the next Manager but that would be monumentally stupid as it seems that Rafa’s requests are within what would be a normal clubs budget and within Ashley’s pledge to spend all money generated by the club.

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