Alan Shearer delivers his instant reaction as Newcastle beat Brentford

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Alan Shearer has heaped praise on Eddie Howe for his role in Newcastle United’s comeback victory against Brentford.

A second half turnaround from Newcastle gave the Magpies a fifth win in a row, coming from 1-0 down to beat the Bees 2-1.

Ivan Toney gave Brentford the lead shortly before the break, scoring from the penalty spot after a lengthy VAR intervention. It was a brave spot kick from the striker, having already had one penalty saved by Nick Pope earlier in the game.

It was a woeful first half from Newcastle, who were clearly missing the absent Allan Saint-Maximin.

But there was a massive response after the interval. Joelinton forced an own goal from David Raya, then Callum Wilson and Alexander Isak combined to allow the 23-year-old to score the winner.

It was a cliched game of two halves, and Shearer has credited the Toon boss for the way he changed the game.

Alan Shearer hails ‘brilliant’ Eddie Howe after Newcastle beat Brentford

After the game, the Newcastle legend took to Twitter to provide his instant reaction to another huge three points.

He wrote: “Great win for the Toon. Much better second half. Eddie’s changes at HT were brilliant.”

Howe deserves the plaudits

The changes that Howe made at the break were decisive. He took off Sean Longstaff and Jacob Murphy, and brought on Callum Wilson and Anthony Gordon.

It led to a change of formation, with Newcastle going from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2. Joe Willock moved to the left, Gordon played on the right, while Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton played centrally. We also saw Howe go with a front two, with Isak and Wilson playing together.

Those tactical changes inspired the comeback, and it was the combination of Wilson and Isak that led to the winner.

The most important change was probably Joelinton moving into the middle. He was absolutely dominant, and provided a bit more bite that had been lacking in the first half.

It was great in-game management from Howe, who will have been furious with the opening 45 minutes.

His ‘brilliant’ changes were the difference, and Shearer is buzzing after witnessing another ‘great’ win for Newcastle United.