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When Jose Mourinho arrived at St James' Park and complimented Newcastle's coach and his players, local fans were concerned about a difficult game. But such fears disappeared due to a strike from the winger and a brace from substitute Harvey Barnes, making sure the visitors' new manager did not inflict pain for Howe's team.

Game Flow and Initial Exchanges

The Benfica boss had forecast that the home side would be extremely aggressive, but his own team displayed their similar aggressive style. Benfica certainly delighted in disrupting the Magpies' early attempts to build a fluent passing tempo.

Adding to the home team's challenges, two players, Tonali and the Brazilian, began as substitutes as they continued recovering from illness and a knock respectively.

Before the start, the two managers exchanged a brief, reserved embrace, and it soon became apparent that the Benfica coach had told his side to subdue the home fans by slowing the game and reducing the temperature whenever possible.

Critical Events and Turning Points

Benfica's tactic yielded mixed results, but when Anthony Gordon and the Newcastle attack succeeded to dismantle Benfica's defensive barricades, they at first struggled to create good opportunities.

Additionally, Benfica's Belgium winger Lukebakio nearly demonstrated scoring skill when, after leaving Dan Burn behind, he tested Nick Pope with a powerful strike that required an excellent one-handed stop. No wonder the goalkeeper retains hope for an England return in time for the World Cup.

Yet when the winger hit another attempt off the post, the home side roused themselves. Murphy shot wide, and Anatoliy Trubin made an impressive near-post stop from Bruno Guimaraes before Anthony Gordon at last opened the scoreless tie.

The England winger's scorching pace had caused problems for Mourinho all night, and he calmly slotted the opener past Trubin after his teammate's early cross into the area paid off.

On the occasion Newcastle's intense, pressing game was not anticipated by Benfica, Jacob Murphy, chosen over the expensive signing, was there to pass a ground ball across the face of goal for Gordon to finish.

Later Stages and Decisive Changes

From the beginning, Benfica could not be blamed of defending deeply and playing for a draw, but now Mourinho's side pushed forward with total abandon. The winger consistently showed an ability to unsettle Newcastle's back four, and the Magpies were probably grateful to regroup at the break.

The first half ended with the keeper again rescuing his team by tipping Lukebakio's left-foot around the goal frame, and as the teams emerged for the second half, everything seemed evenly poised.

While Anthony Gordon, evidently boosted by netting his fourth goal in three European appearances this campaign, played with the zeal of a wide player aiming to alter the power balance in his team's direction, Lukebakio had other plans.

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

Howe might have relaxed had Miley, filling in for Sandro Tonali, not directed a set-piece above the crossbar from a good position. Rather, this absorbing contest continued to swing from end to end, prompting Newcastle's manager to introduce Joelinton and Harvey Barnes in place of Jacob Ramsey and Jacob Murphy.

The Benfica boss, at the same time, brought on an additional forward in Ivanovic. It would arguably prove a gamble too far.

Harvey Barnes Seals the Game

Before that, the away team, and especially their Portuguese defender Antonio Silva, had performed a fine job in limiting Nick Woltemade's room and pushing Newcastle's Germany centre-forward back. However, with defender Amar Dedic substituted, the defense was weakened, and the way was open for Barnes to prove that Anthony Gordon is not the manager's only goal-scoring wide player.

Newcastle's double substitution was already proving effective by the time the goalkeeper dispatched a superb long throw in the substitute's path. When Antonio Silva, on this occasion, misread the bounce, the winger was clear, sprinting into the penalty box before maintaining commendable poise to lash a sublime strike past the keeper.

After Barnes rolled a shot through unfortunate the goalkeeper's feet after receiving Gordon's stellar pass, it was all over. The Benfica manager had cautioned that Newcastle have four very fast wide attackers, and three goals from two wingers had destroyed his hopes of earning the team's first European result of the season.