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When Jose Mourinho came at Newcastle's stadium and praised Eddie Howe and his squad, local supporters feared a difficult game. However such worries disappeared thanks to a strike from the winger and a brace from substitute Harvey Barnes, making sure Benfica's coach would not cause pain for Newcastle.

Match Flow and Initial Exchanges

The Benfica boss had predicted that Newcastle would be extremely aggressive, but his Benfica players displayed their own combative approach. Benfica certainly enjoyed disrupting Newcastle's initial attempts to establish a smooth attacking rhythm.

Compounding the home team's issues, two players, Tonali and Joelinton, started as substitutes as they were recovering from sickness and injury each.

Prior to kick-off, the coaches shared a brief, cool greeting, and it quickly became apparent that Mourinho had instructed his side to subdue the crowd by delaying the game and reducing the intensity whenever possible.

Key Moments and Decisive Actions

Benfica's strategy yielded mixed results, but when Gordon and the Newcastle attack managed to break through the defensive barricades, they initially found it hard to generate good chances.

Moreover, Benfica's Belgium winger Dodi Lukebakio almost demonstrated how to finish when, after leaving the defender on the ground, he tested Newcastle's keeper with a powerful shot that got an excellent one-handed stop. No wonder the goalkeeper retains hope for an national team recall in time for the global tournament.

But when Lukebakio hit a further shot off the post, Newcastle roused themselves. Jacob Murphy fired off target, and Anatoliy Trubin made an impressive near-post stop from Guimaraes before Gordon finally broke the scoreless tie.

Gordon's blazing speed had created consternation for the Benfica coach all night, and he neatly slotted the opener past Trubin after Murphy's quick cross into the area paid off.

When Newcastle's intense, pressing game was not second-guessed by the opposition, Jacob Murphy, chosen over £55m Anthony Elanga, was there to pass a ground cross across the goal for the winger to polish off.

Later Stages and Match-Winning Changes

From the beginning, the Portuguese team could not be accused of defending deeply and seeking a point, but now their players pushed forward with real freedom. Lukebakio consistently displayed an skill to destabilize Howe's back four, and the home team were likely grateful to regroup at the break.

The opening period ended with Pope once more rescuing his team by diverting the attacker's shot around the goal frame, and as the teams came out for the second half, everything seemed finely poised.

If Gordon, clearly boosted by scoring his fourth goal in three Champions League appearances this season, played with the zeal of a winger set to alter the power balance in his team's favor, the Benfica attacker had other plans.

Mourinho's winger had previously emphasized that, while Burn is a fine central defender, he is not a born left-back, and Newcastle fans were nervous every time he moved forward.

The Newcastle manager might have relaxed had Miley, deputising for Tonali, not headed a set-piece above the crossbar from a good position. Rather, this absorbing contest continued to move from end to end, prompting Newcastle's coach to bring on Joelinton and Barnes in place of Jacob Ramsey and Jacob Murphy.

The Benfica boss, meanwhile, threw on an extra forward in Franjo Ivanovic. This would arguably prove a gamble too far.

Harvey Barnes Wins the Match

Before that, the away team, and especially their Portugal defender Antonio Silva, had performed a good job in limiting Woltemade's room and forcing the German centre-forward deep. But now, with right-back Amar Dedic off, the defense was weakened, and the path was open for Harvey Barnes to show that Anthony Gordon is not the manager's only goal-scoring winger.

The home side's double substitution was already proving effective by the time Pope sent a wonderful throw in the substitute's direction. When Antonio Silva, on this occasion, misjudged the flight, Barnes was clear, sprinting into the area before maintaining impressive poise to fire a sublime strike past Trubin.

After Harvey Barnes slid a shot through unfortunate the goalkeeper's legs after receiving Anthony Gordon's excellent pass, it was all over. Mourinho had cautioned that Newcastle have four very fast wide attackers, and three goals from a pair of wide men had destroyed his chances of earning the team's first European result of the season.