Newcastle United booked their place in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup with an excellent 3-1 win over Brentford at St James’ Park.
The Magpies, who smashed Leicester City 4-0 at the weekend, continued their momentum against the Bees on Wednesday night, sealing a comfortable victory.
Newcastle opened the scoring within the first 10 minutes when Sandro Tonali fired in from the edge of the box.
It was the Italy international’s first goal since August 2023, but he didn’t have to wait as long for his next as he beat the goalkeeper with a cushioned side-foot volley in the 43rd minute.
Fabian Schar put the game to bed with a close range finish midway through the second-half before Yoane Wissa’s consolation goal in stoppage-time.
National media wowed by Tonali’s display
The national media were effusive in their praise of Tonali after his superb performance at St James’ Park.
The Chronicle Live gave him the maximum 10/10 rating, saying he ‘oozed class once again’.
Their verdict read: “Oozed class once again at number 6. A lovely opener to get the party started and then effectively sealed the game with a second before the break. Had a hand in the third too. Man of the match”.
The 24-year-old also posted excellent statistics in the match. He had 74 touches and completed 56 of his 60 passes (93% accuracy).
The talented midfielder registered four tackles and completed 100% of his dribbles.
He was dribbled past twice, but won 6 of his 11 ground duels and made a clearance.
Newcastle will now return to action on Saturday when they take on Ipswich Town in the Premier League.
Fans will hope Tonali makes a similar impact against the Tractor Boys at the weekend.
Read more: Chris Waddle blown away by Sandro Tonali goal for Newcastle vs Brentford
Stats from Sofascore