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As Jose Mourinho arrived at St James' Park and praised Newcastle's coach and his players, local fans feared a tough match. However those fears vanished thanks to a strike from the winger and two more from replacement Harvey Barnes, making sure Benfica's new manager did not inflict any trouble for Newcastle.

Game Flow and Early Exchanges

The Benfica boss had forecast that the home side would be very physical, but his own team showed their similar aggressive style. Benfica certainly enjoyed breaking up the Magpies' early attempts to build a fluent attacking tempo.

Compounding the home team's issues, two midfielders, Sandro Tonali and the Brazilian, began on the bench as they were recovering from illness and injury respectively.

Prior to kick-off, the coaches shared a perfunctory, reserved embrace, and it quickly became apparent that the Benfica coach had instructed his team to quiet the crowd by slowing the game and reducing the temperature at every chance.

Key Moments and Turning Points

The visitors' tactic produced mixed results, but when Anthony Gordon and his teammates succeeded to dismantle Benfica's backline, they at first struggled to generate good opportunities.

Moreover, the Belgium winger Dodi Lukebakio nearly showed how to finish when, after beating Dan Burn on the ground, he forced Newcastle's keeper with a powerful shot that got an excellent single-hand save. No wonder the goalkeeper retains hope for an national team return in time for the World Cup.

Yet when Lukebakio hit another shot against the post, Newcastle woke up. Jacob Murphy fired off target, and Anatoliy Trubin made an impressive near-post save from Guimaraes before Anthony Gordon finally broke the deadlock.

Gordon's scorching speed had caused consternation for Mourinho all evening, and he neatly slotted the first goal past the goalkeeper after his teammate's quick cross into the box proved effective.

On the occasion the Magpies' hard, high press was not anticipated by the opposition, Murphy, preferred over the expensive signing, was there to pass a low ball across the face of goal for Gordon to polish off.

Second Half and Decisive Substitutions

From the beginning, Benfica could not be blamed of parking the bus and seeking a point, but now Mourinho's side pushed forward with real freedom. The winger consistently displayed an ability to destabilize Howe's defense, and the Magpies were probably relieved to reset at the break.

The first half ended with Pope again rescuing his side by tipping the attacker's left-foot wide of the post, and as the sides emerged for the second half, the match seemed finely balanced.

While Anthony Gordon, clearly boosted by scoring his fourth goal in three Champions League appearances this campaign, played with the determination of a wide player set to alter the power balance in Newcastle's favor, the Benfica attacker had different plans.

The manager's No 11 had previously emphasized that, while Dan Burn is a capable central defender, he is not a born left-back, and home hearts were in mouths every time Lukebakio moved forward.

Howe might have felt easier had Lewis Miley, filling in for Tonali, not headed a corner over the bar from a good position. Rather, this thrilling contest continued to swing from one goal to the other, prompting Newcastle's coach to introduce Joelinton and Barnes in place of Ramsey and Jacob Murphy.

Mourinho, meanwhile, brought on an additional striker in Franjo Ivanovic. This would arguably prove a gamble that backfired.

Barnes Seals the Game

Until then, Benfica, and in particular their Portuguese defender Antonio Silva, had performed a fine job in restricting Woltemade's space and forcing the Germany centre-forward deep. However, with right-back Amar Dedic off, the backline was underpowered, and the way was clear for Harvey Barnes to show that Gordon is not the manager's only goal-scoring winger.

Newcastle's double substitution was already proving effective by the time Pope dispatched a wonderful throw in the substitute's direction. When Silva, for once, misjudged the bounce, Barnes was away, sprinting into the penalty box before keeping commendable composure to lash a sublime shot past Trubin.

After Harvey Barnes slid a shot through poor the goalkeeper's feet after receiving Gordon's stellar pass, it was all over. The Benfica manager had warned that Newcastle have four very fast wingers, and three goals from a pair of wide men had shattered his chances of securing the team's first Champions League points of the campaign.