Newcastle avoided finishing bottom of the Premier League Asia Trophy with a 1-0 win over West Ham in the third/fourth place play-off game in Shanghai.
Yoshinori Muto scored in a comfortable first half, and although West Ham came back into the game more after the interval, Newcastle always looked in control.
There were some positives to come from thew game, and we have picked out a few of those.
Muto is not a lone striker
Muto looked very poor against Wolves on Wednesday as he played the lone striker role. But against West Ham, he had youngster Elias Sorensen up top with him, and he was transformed.
Capping an overall good display with a thoroughly deserved goal, Muto could be used in the position Ayoze Perez occupied last season.
But with strikers certain to be coming in, how much of a chance he will get in the Premier League remains to be seen.
Elias Sorensen showed promise for the future
The young Dane was handed his big chance by making his first senior start for Newcastle.
He had a fairly quiet game – missing one great chance and showing some good touches on the deck – but did enough to show he has what it takes to be a big player in the years to come.
A season on loan in the second or third tier will do him wonders next season, and after that the world will be his oyster.
Fringe players were clearly playing to impress
The players deemed surplus to requirements by Rafa Benitez last season, were clearly out to show the new manager they have a role to play next season.
Jacob Murphy in particular showed promise when he came on at half-time, and had the ball been played to him a couple of times, after making tremendous runs into the box, he could have grabbed a goal or two.
Whether the likes of Jack Colback, Achraf Lazaar and Rolando Aarons have a future under Steve Bruce remains to be seen, but fans will be hoping a better calibre of player will arrive instead.
Newcastle’s current squad prefer a 3-5-2 formation
With Matt Ritchie reverting to the wing-back role he excelled in last season, with young Jamie Sterry playing the same role on the right, the formation looked a lot more balance than the previous game.
The three centre-backs gel better, and it creates room for an extra body in the midfield, and that helps the whole side.
Shelvey looks better in that lineup too, with him getting more space and time on the ball.
So all in all, it would be no surprise to see them play much of the new season in this way.
Sean Longstaff showed his injury is behind him
Longstaff’s return was a welcome sight for Newcastle fans, and it was encouraging to see that his quality is still there, and the injury has not affected his game.
He was joined on the pitch by his brother Matty, and the two linked up well together on a couple of occasions.
But Sean looked assured and back to full fitness as he played in the latter stages, and fans will be hoping that he remains a Newcastle player when the transfer window closes next month.
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