Newcastle United returned to winning ways on Wednesday night.
It was a weird night in many ways. Although it was great to win and strengthen our position in the Champions League, doubts remain about the fluidity of the team. The big questions will be answered on Sunday when we go away to Brentford.
Below, we rate the performances of each player against Athletic Bilbao.
**Nick Pope – 7.5 –** It was a positive performance from Pope after a weekend of criticism for his role in the defeat to West Ham. He made a number of saves, with a couple worthy of extra praise. The sweeping was also very good, as he came out of his box on a couple of occasions to deny Athletic good chances on goal. A few good throw outs too, making up for his limitations with the ball at his feet.
**Kieran Trippier – 7.5 –** The set piece delivery was very good and he was rewarded with an assist for the opening goal. Defensively, he was solid as shown by his four tackles in the game. I’ve dropped him down from a higher mark due to his looseness with the ball, with a pass success rate of just 67%, but he wasn’t alone in that.
**Malick Thiaw\* – 9 –** The German is looking like the best signing made by the club this summer. He is a perfect fit for our right centre back position and it is slightly frustrating that we didn’t push more seriously for him when we first targeted him. Defensively, he is a class above, often spotting danger before it occurs. More impressively, he had a pass success rate of 88% from 77 passes.
**Sven Botman – 7.5 –** The relationship with Thiaw is improving all the time and the pair were both good on Wednesday. He dealt well with being pressed and defended the box well. Botman will feel disappointed that he didn’t score, as he did have a good chance in the second half.
**Dan Burn – 8 –** Burn has been criticised in recent weeks and he does look like he is out of place at left back. He is being targeted at times, but this was one of his better performances for a few matches. His header will be remembered as an iconic moment in the club’s history, due to the uniqueness of it.
**Bruno Guimaraes 7 –** Considering he was struggling with illness, Bruno was tidy without standing out. 94% pass success rate is impressive considering the press and his illness. He wasn’t covering the ground that he usually does, but he can be forgiven due to his physical state.
**Sandro Tonali 7.5 –** The consistency of Tonali is scary and it is something for the rest of the team to attempt to replicate. He was very good on Wednesday and helped us manage the game. The Italian won five fouls, which was important to break the game down and help us manage the situation.
**Joelinton 7.5 –** Like Burn, Joelinton has been criticised by fans in recent weeks. He hasn’t found the fluidity that he has had in recent seasons. Wednesday was a positive step. He took his goal well and did carry a threat with his runs in behind their defence. Out of possession, he was aggressive and helped us compete physically. There is still a technical ability that he lacks though and for that reason, he can’t start every game.
**Harvey Barnes – 7 –** Barnes looked better when he moved to the left and he got the assist for the second goal. There is definitely improvement in his output in recent weeks and he looks closer to the player he was last season. He was the standout of the starting attackers.
**Nick Woltemade – 5.5 –** It was a struggle for Woltemade, as he did lose the ball a few times when he dropped to link the play. Athletic targeted him physically and he didn’t adapt to that challenge. He missed a good chance in the first half, but that was his only real sight of goal.
**Anthony Gordon – 4 –** That was a night to forget for Anthony Gordon. He was continually giving the ball away and didn’t ever threaten the Athletic defence. The England international did look like he was carrying a knock going into the game and he did leave the pitch due to injury. Hopefully, it was either illness or an injury that was holding him back, because the performance was bad.
**Jacob Murphy – 5 –** The winger didn’t ever get into the game after coming on and was a passenger.
**Lewis Hall – 7.5 –** It was a really positive showing from the left back. His ball carrying was impressive and he added something to our team down the left side. We desperately need him back starting games.
**Lewis Miley – 5 –** Like Murphy, he didn’t get into the game.
**Anthony Elanga – 4 –** Another game passes without a goal contribution for Elanga, who also seemed to panic every time he got the ball. He had a great chance to score and wasted it. The technical level still looks short of what is required and it was noteworthy that Murphy was brought on ahead of him. There was lots of space for our attackers to run into and it looked like it was set up better for the Swede.
**Jacob Ramsey – N/A**