A band-aid to disguise tensions within Newcastle, or a potential long-term solution to their problems? Whatever the reality, Eddie Howe's inconsistent side were transformed after two fine first-half goals from the excellent Sandro Tonali and Fabian Schaal defeated an inferior Brentford on a calm and quiet Tyneside. They are competing in the semi-finals as a double feature away from the centerpiece of Wembley, which could cause a disaster. night.
Tonali showed a valuable ability to control the pace of play in this last eight run and slow things down when necessary, helping Howe end the club's long decades without a trophy. As dreams come true, coach Thomas Frank's players wilt under the floodlights. They were mentally checking in for their flight back to London long before Ioan Wissa's stoppage-time goal reduced the deficit. Frank was certainly not in the mood for excuses. “Newcastle were the better team,” he said. “We gave away three soft goals and that's the most disappointing thing.”
Mr. Howe couldn't stop laughing. “We're back in rhythm offensively,” he said. “And we are starting to see the best in Sandro. He has better balance and is looking creative again.” Tonali could return to his beloved Milan for £45m or move to Juventus in January The Italian midfielder appears to be quite an integral part of Howe's side at the moment, although there have been rumors about his potential.
He and his impressive passing range have become almost irreplaceable since the Newcastle manager gave Tonali a slightly deeper role in the heart of midfield, turning him into a flexible number six and Bruno Guimarães closer to a number eight. I saw it.
Tonali also scored a strange goal. Everyone was reminded of that when Nathan Collins cleared Tino Livramento's cross straight away and the Italian fired a perfectly calibrated right-footed shot past Mark Frecken. Collins was initially named as a substitute, but was inserted into the starting XI after Sepp van den Berg was injured during the warm-up. Much to Frank's frustration, it wasn't long before the back three was further reshuffled, with Mats Roazlev coming on for the limping Ethan Pinnock.
Wissa thought they should have been awarded a penalty to compound the gloom that had come when Martin Dubravka appeared to be rounded up and catch the forward's heel. Referee Sam Ballot did not accept Howe's claim, which would have been extremely harsh on the goalkeeper, but perhaps would have been upheld had VAR been working. For a while, the Newcastle manager looked a little uneasy at the way his team's performance dipped from a ferocious early start to a rather hesitant and decidedly edgy mode as the scores began to level towards half-time. He had an expression on his face.
With coach Guimarães sitting out the first leg of the semi-finals after being booked for stepping on Vitaliy Janert's toe, it is becoming easier to see how the two teams sit mid-table in the Premier League on points. . At least Tonali scores again and Newcastle fans can finally rest assured that Frank's side, while good at home, have shown strange timidity on the road and have yet to win away from home this season. That was until I was able to do it.
Sure enough, the memories of Howe's side's 4-2 surrender in west London earlier this month were all but erased as Tonali connected with Anthony Gordon's looping corner and directed a wonderful cushion volley past a helpless Frecken. Ta. Crucially, Brentford's mark for that dead ball was Joelinton, who enjoyed distracting two defenders in a move that was characteristic of Howe's assistant Jason Tindall's training ground ingenuity. was thwarted by a decoy operation. Franck could have shown similar ruthlessness from his players, but instead they provided a valuable small threat, with Tonali dictating the tempo, as any attacking ideas were completely absent. I saw it.
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He and Newcastle were in contention even before Scher scored the third goal after Tonali and Lewis Hall's shots were blocked, and Gallowgate Enders helped Howe's players end a major domestic trophy drought dating back to 1955. I had already done enough to be able to start dreaming boldly about the possibility of finally finishing it. Guimarães then selflessly rolled the ball into the front of the goal.
Like Guimarães, Schar will miss the semi-final first leg after being booked in advance, but maybe, just maybe, this season is destined for a happy ending.
