Newcastle United £130m ‘luxury’ as Eddie Howe slams ‘petty’ Premier League decision - Aston Villa five moments

Eddie Howe’s big decisions pay off for Newcastle United

Ahead of the match, head coach Eddie Howe faced a number of selection dilemmas after spending £125million on new signings Sandro Tonali, Harvey Barnes and Tino Livramento.

The Magpies boss decided to start £52million Tonali over Sean Longstaff in midfield with his justification for the decision being down to Longstaff’s minor groin injury that hampered his pre-season. Anthony Gordon was also preferred to Barnes on the left wing.

The two key decisions were effectively vindicated within six minutes as Gordon crossed the ball in for Tonali to slide in the fastest debut goal of any Newcastle player in the Premier League era.

Another big call to start Alexander Isak over last season’s top scorer Callum Wilson also paid off as the Swedish striker restored Newcastle’s lead after Moussa Diaby’s equaliser before making it 3-1 with a lovely chipped finish in the second half.

Newcastle United & Eddie Howe’s new ‘luxury’

With Newcastle leading 3-1, Howe had the luxury of turning to as strong a bench as the club have had in recent years as he introduced Wilson and Barnes for the final 20 minutes or so.

To bring on a pair who scored 31 Premier League goals between them last season while also introducing the likes of Longstaff, Jacob Murphy and Elliot Anderson signifies the strength in depth currently on show in Howe’s squad. Whether it is fully equipped to deal with Champions League football remains to be seen, but the initial signs look positive.

The double change that saw Wilson and Barnes introduced ultimately put the game to bed for Newcastle as the pair combined for Wilson to net his fourth consecutive opening day goal for The Magpies.

Moments later Barnes cut the ball back for Wilson once again but the United No. 9 was forced to snatch at the shot as Emi Martinez pulled off a point blank save.

Still, the former Leicester City winger was able to get in on the action himself to make it 5-1 following a neat through ball from Murphy.

“We need the strongest bench we can get this year with the amount of games we have, competitions we are in,” Howe told The Gazette.

“You just hope the team performs and you get the benefit of that. I have to compliment the players on the fitness levels, I thought we looked really strong, stronger at the end and that’s testament to what they’ve given during the summer.”

Newcastle’s bench had two academy graduates plus around £130million worth of options for Howe to utilise.

New technical area dynamic for Newcastle United following ‘petty’ rule change

Saturday was the first time new technical area rules for Howe, assistant manager Jason Tindall and the Newcastle coaching staff were enforced. As of the start of the new season, teams must have only one member of the coaching staff stood at the front of the technical area at any one time.

And with Howe and Tindall often stood side-by-side at the front of the technical area, it’s a change that could take some getting used to for the coaching duo. During the match, Tindall appeared to be reprimanded one more than one occasion to keep his distance from Howe as he spoke frequently with the fourth official.

“We had some friendly conversations,” Howe admitted. “It is a strange dynamic. It can be a bit petty at times when you are talking inches, but we are just trying to do the best job we can for our players.

“It was managed well today. Me and Jason dovetailed at moments when we felt we needed to.

“The main change is for us not the players. Jason will step forward for set plays and then I will go back to speak to the other staff who are analysing things at a very high pace.”

During the match, Howe was often seen pacing at the front of the technical area though Tindall would move to the front for the majority of set-piece situations.

United’s second goal, scored by Isak, came from a well-worked set-piece situation as Sven Botman played the ball across goal to Isak after Tonali received Kieran Trippier’s pass and delivered the ball into the penalty area.

One of Newcastle United’s longest Premier League matches

New rules regarding stoppage time saw Newcastle and Villa play a total of 108 minutes at St James’ Park. Six goals, two VAR checks and a serious injury blow for Tyrone Mings saw 11 minutes added at the end of the first half and seven added at the end of the second.

As a result, The Magpies played one of their ‘longest’ Premier League matches in what unfolded as a memorable evening at St James’ Park. Match officials have been told to accurately calculate all stoppages in matches this season, leading to significantly more stoppage time than before.

Speaking about the changes, Howe told the Gazette: “I wouldn’t say I’m massively for it to be honest in sense of the extra time.

“The stoppage time I’m a little bit uncomfortable with because it extends the game where a 90 minute game turns potentially into a 100 minute game and, as we all say, the demand on players is higher than it has ever been, the game is quicker than it has ever been.”

A perfect start to the season for Newcastle United

The 5-1 win against Villa was Newcastle’s joint-biggest opening day win in the Premier League era. Not since beating West Ham United 4-0 at St James’ Park at the start of the 2002-03 season have The Magpies started the season on such a high.

And depending on how results go on Sunday, it could be only the third time in the Premier League that Newcastle have been top of the table after matchday one.

There are still 37 games left to play, but United could not have asked for a better start. Onto Manchester City next weekend.