Speaking after our 2-1 victory against Rayo Vallecano, Eddie Howe revealed how ‘pleased’ he was with the performance, why 16 first-team players were missing from the squad and labelled Sean Longstaff as ‘outstanding’.
Newcastle deserved to win the game – arguably by more than just one goal – after putting in a solid display, particularly in the midfield, and creating a fair amount of chances.
With the return of the season right around the corner, Howe claimed that this was ‘just the test we needed’ as we prepare for our Carabao Cup game against Bournemouth on Tuesday night.
The former Cherries boss was impressed with the first-half in particular where we played with a good intensity and pressed well, but believes the second half became ‘a bit bitty’ following the substitutions.
Longstaff, who opened the scoring and played well, received a lot of praise from his manager who believes that the midfielder could become a ‘potential goalscorer’ for us and has been ‘brilliant’ in all areas this season.
With 16 players missing, Howe was quick to reassure everyone that he was ‘just trying to manage their game time’ in preparation for Tuesday and that they have ‘worked with them elsewhere’.
On Newcastle’s performance, Howe said: “I thought there was some really good stuff from us, especially in the first half. The second half was a bit bitty with a lot of substitutions. Overall, very pleased.”
On the game, Howe said: “It was really good, just the test we needed. Vallecano have been very good this season, a really strong team. They play like a PL team, very aggressive, front-foot team. I thought there was some really good stuff from us, especially in the first half.”
On the missing players, Howe said: “We’re just trying to manage their game time to make sure everyone is fit and ready to play on Tuesday.
“If we had filled our bench with senior players, they wouldn’t have had the minutes they needed, so we have worked them hard elsewhere.”
On Longstaff, Howe said: “I think he’s deserved a goal for his performances towards the back end of the break. He was outstanding for us physically, technically, tactically I think he’s been brilliant. It’s nice to see him score I do think he’s potentially a good goalscorer.”
