Talk of the Toon for 135 minutes
FIVE THINGS WE LEARNED IN THE GAME OF ‘THREE HALVES’
NEWCASTLE United drew 1-1 with Royal Antwerp during an unorthodox 135-minute friendly match in Spain.
Matt Ritchie gave Newcastle the lead after 39 minutes at the Pinatar Arena, latching on to a Chancel Mbemba through-ball before chipping the goalkeeper, but Antwerp hit back through Alexander Corryn during the third period.
Here, NUFC writer Chris Waugh takes us through what we learned from this unusual friendly in Spain. 1 Ritchie and Shelvey really are men in form
It is a shame in many ways Newcastle did not have a Premier League match this weekend – even if it their postponed game was going to be against Tottenham Hotspur.
Ritchie, in particular, is a man who has found a rich vein of form.
The 28-year-old was forced to wait until last month for his first goal of the campaign – and then he followed that up with another strike against Southampton.
In this friendly, he was undoubtedly the man of the match.
Not only did he score a delightful opener – running on to an inch-perfect through-ball from Chancel Mbemba before controlling and dinking the ball calmly over an advancing Sinan Bolat in the Antwerp goal – he was the most effective player on the pitch.
He also came close to adding to his goal on three separate occasions, as well as creating three golden opportunities for his team-mates.
Jonjo Shelvey, meanwhile, was only on the pitch for 45 minutes but he controlled the game during that first period.
Afforded far too much space by Antwerp, Shelvey sent a succession of dangerous passes through to Joselu, Christian Atsu and Ritchie, before being withdrawn after 45 minutes.
If Ritchie and Shelvey show this same form against Huddersfield Town after the international break, surely Newcastle will have too much for the Terriers. 2 Massadio Haidara’s performance was a pleasant surprise The 25-year-old has not made a top-flight appearance all season and it would not be a surprise if he did not feature during the final eight games of the season either. However, should injury befall both Paul Dummett and Javier Manquillo – or if a suspension was to strike either of the pair – then Haidara could yet be called upon. That is why Benitez was so keen to get his some game time in Spain. Of all the players on show, the Frenchman’s performance probably offered the most pleasant surprise.
Dummett is rightly first choice for United but his main strengths are in defence with his discipline and tackling ability.
Haidara, on the other hand, can offer a threat in attack – and he caused Antwerp problems during the 90 minutes he was on the pitch.
Marauding forward from left-back, Haidara whipped in a succession of dangerous crosses, one of which Joselu headed wide, and another with which Mikel Merino should have done better.
Defensively, Haidara also held his line and constantly communicated with the rest of his back four – and responded well when both centrebacks were switched at the end of the first period.
He also kept his cool when Antwerp forward Stallone Limbombe tried to wind him up and even went face to face with Haidara at one stage, still clearly riled by an earlier challenge from the Frenchman.
If this is to be Haidara’s farewell appearance for Newcastle – his contract is up this summer – then he signed off with a decent display.
Even if Benitez has not played him much, the Spaniard has always been impressed by Haidara’s professionalism, which he once again displayed here. 3 Neither of the two debutants looked out of their depth
After a back injury prevented Rob Elliot from travelling to Spain, Benitez called upon under-23 shot-stopper Nathan Harker as his third goalkeeper.
Spanish youngster Victor Fernandez, meanwhile, was also rewarded with a place on the plane due to his versatility and his impressive performances for the reserve side over the
This match served a purpose but I would not be rushing to see another 135-minute game again in a hurry
last 18 months. Both were introduced for the third period of this game as they made their first-team bows – and both showed glimpses of why they are two of the most promising talents in the under-23 set up.
Unfortunately for Harker, his first act was to pick the ball out of the back of the net as Corryn scored within a minute of the second restart.
However, the young goalkeeper then made a couple of decent saves, showed he could be quick off his line and react to situations, while he also spoke to his back four throughout – which is what Benitez wants from his shot-stoppers.
Fernandez, meanwhile, offered the trickery he has shown for the reserve team.
The Spaniard, who can play anywhere across the attack, started on the right flank and saw an early effort saved – while he also caused opposition full-back Jelle van Damme constant problems.
Van Damme was booked within seven minutes of Fernandez being introduced and he never quite got to grips with the talented 19-yearold.
This may have been a friendly against poor opposition but it was pleasing to see neither Fernandez nor Harker looked out of their depth at this level.
There is no doubt Newcastle’s under-23 system needs reforming, yet there is talent already there which the Magpies can work with and hopefully harness 4 This game of three thirds was strange for all – including the players
This 135-minute match served a useful purpose in that it provided all 22 Newcastle players on show with a decent runout - but it is not a concept which is going to rival the orthodox 90-minute game any time soon.
Benitez encountered a similar concept during a pre-season tournament in Italy while at Inter Milan and he wanted the flexibility to hand some fringe players a full 90 minutes – while also ensuring his first XI were afforded decent game time too.
The match itself suffered after an exciting first period, the players seemingly uncertain about how to keep up the in-game intensity after 45 minutes, with the knowledge there were still another 90 to play.
The 1,000 or so spectators did not seem to mind, a small section of Newcastle fans singing throughout, while Benitez will have been pleased his squad appeared to come through the game largely unscathed.
This match served a purpose but I would not be rushing to see another 135-minute game again in a hurry. 5 A fascinating insight into communication during a game In Premier Lea-gue stadia which hold up to 90,000 fans you rarely hear the players and coaching staff communicating with one another.
At a stadium which holds fewer than 3,000 fans – and which had a crowd of fewer than 1,000, which in itself shows how far and wide United supporters will travel to see their team – you could hear just about every that was going on.
Benitez was sat less than 10 yards ahead of us in the press box and you could hear some of his instructions to his players – like when he was encouraging Merino to advance with the ball in midfield in Spanish or when he was communicating with Christian Atsu in English down by the near touchline, or when he was explaining to Ciaran Clark his options in defence While you could hear all of the players speaking with one another, it was Martin Dubravka’s voice which clearly travelled the furthest. The Slovak international ensured his team-mates were in position, he would communicate across when there was a man on, while he also demanded the ball and constantly reassured United players of his presence. It is obvious Dubravka is a commanding and dominant presence when you hear him marshalling his teammates like that – and it is therefore no surprise he has been so successful in such a short space of time. This really was a fascinating insight into how top-flight teams communicate out on the pitch – and it is not often you are this close to the action in a match involved a Premier League side - even if this was a friendly consisting of three ‘thirds.’