Newcastle United injury ‘scare’, Eddie Howe’s classy gesture & Nick Pope’s ‘priority’ – Rayo moments missed

16 players ‘missing’ for Newcastle United

Newcastle named a strong starting line-up to face Rayo Vallecano with 11 first team regulars named plus a bench made up of Under-21s players plus Mark Gillespie, who isn’t part of Eddie Howe’s 25 man squad.

Kieran Trippier and Nick Pope both started the match less than a week after England’s World Cup quarter-final exit to France in Qatar. But 16 first team players weren’t included in the matchday squad.

Alexander Isak remains out as he recovers from a thigh injury while Emil Krafth and Paul Dummett also missed out due to injury. Dummett was joined by Matt Ritchie and Elliot Anderson watching the match from the director’s box in the absence of the club’s hierarchy.

Bruno Guimaraes – who also watched the match from the stands – was given extra time off following the World Cup along with Callum Wilson and Fabian Schar while the rest of the squad who were missing were rested following an intra-squad friendly at the training ground on Friday.

Despite the absences, there were no fresh concerns to report on the injury front.

After the match, head coach Howe said: “Everyone’s coming back at different times and stages with different things behind them.

"We’re having to manage that situation, and trying to get the players fit as quickly as possible without putting them at risk of injury. Slightly unusual time for us with players coming back at different stages and [with] different needs. Today reflected that.

"Hopefully, the players that played got what they needed, and they’re all a step closer to being fit and ready to play.”

Rayo Vallecano’s away following

Looking at St James's Park on Saturday afternoon, you’d be forgiven for missing the 25 Rayo Vallecano fans in the Leazes Corner making up the 34,956 crowd. But you could certainly hear them as they chanted throughout the match, displaying their ‘Bukaneros’ banner – the name of Rayo’s ultras group.

The Bukaneros, translated to Buccaneers, is a somewhat ironic name given Vallecas is over 185 miles from the nearest coastline.

Overall, it was an impressive crowd for a friendly match in December with the entire lower section of the ground filled though level seven remained closed.

Newcastle defender Jamaal Lascelles said: “Fair play, you can't fault the Newcastle fans. They didn't have to come and show their support today but they did and I'm sure there will be a bigger turnout on Tuesday [v Bournemouth].”

Florian Lejeune’s return to Newcastle and Eddie Howe’s classy gesture

Former Newcastle defender Florian Lejeune received a warm welcome back to St James's Park as he was applauded onto the pitch when substituted on in the second half.

Lejeune made 46 appearances for Newcastle over three injury-hit seasons and is fondly remembered for his stoppage time brace at Everton to rescue a 2-2 draw back in 2020.

The French centre-back was introduced with Newcastle leading 1-0 thanks to Sean Longstaff’s early strike. Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe, despite never coaching Lejeune, embraced the former Magpie before he came onto the pitch.

Newcastle winger and fan Jacob Murphy also applauded his former team-mate along with the near 35,000 crowd in attendance.

But shortly after Lejeune’s introduction, Rayo conceded a penalty which was clinically converted by Chris Wood to make it 2-0.

After the match, Lejeune said: “A special game for me on a personal level and good on a collective level. I think it was a good match between the two teams with more intensity. It's a shame that second we conceded because we had the opportunity to at least tie.

“At the end we returned to 2-1 and had time to tie. On a general level we all know that it has been a moment of the season due to the World Cup, but I think that we are doing a very good job during these weeks and we have played very good games.”

Nick Pope’s ‘priority’ after conceding

Rayo would go on to pull a goal back as Matt Targett slid Raul de Tomas Gomez’s cross into his own net. But goalkeeper Nick Pope didn’t look to pick the ball out of the net, instead he quickly turned to Targett and got his team-mate back on his feet.

It was a simple gesture from the England international but one that wouldn’t have gone unnoticed by Howe as it further demonstrated the team-spirit among his players.

Kieran Trippier’s injury scare and words of encouragement

There was a welcome return for Trippier at right-back following the World Cup. The England international played a key role in Newcastle’s opener with his cross eventually falling to Longstaff to give the hosts the lead.

But in the second half, there was a moment where St James’s Park held its breath as Trippier slipped awkwardly in front of the dugout and remained down. The 32-year-old required treatment on his groin but quickly returned to action with no injury concern despite the brief scare.

In the closing stages of the match, Trippier was substituted and replaced by 16-year-old Lewis Miley. It was Miley’s second first team appearance after the 5-0 win at Al Hilal earlier in the month and his first at St James’s Park.

As Trippier was replaced by the teenage midfielder, he went over and offered some words of encouragement – telling him to enjoy the occasion. Miley played the final seven minutes of normal time as United saw out the 2-1 win.

The Magpies return to St James's Park on Tuesday for a Carabao Cup last-16 match against AFC Bournemouth.