Newcastle United: Toon Takeaways vs. Wolfsburg

PRESTON, ENGLAND - JULY 22: Aleksandar Mitrovic of Newcastle United celebrates after scoring the opening goal during a pre-season friendly match between Preston North End and Newcastle United at Deepdale on July 22, 2017 in Preston, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
PRESTON, ENGLAND - JULY 22: Aleksandar Mitrovic of Newcastle United celebrates after scoring the opening goal during a pre-season friendly match between Preston North End and Newcastle United at Deepdale on July 22, 2017 in Preston, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images) /
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Newcastle United defeated VfL Wolfsburg 3-1 in their last away friendly of the preseason.

In their final friendly away from St. James Park, Newcastle United topped Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg 3-1 yesterday. Rob Elliot was back in goal after missing last match due to illness. All four new players saw action in the fixture and Mikel Merino impressed in his brief shift.

Wolfsburg will likely be the best side Newcastle faces this preseason and they responded with an emphatic victory. The club showed quality long passing from the backline and the midfield. Ayoze Perez may have secured the first crack at the number 10 this season. Jonjo Shelvey was lively in the midfield and wore the captain’s armband for the third time this preseason. The battle for the starting pair at center back will be one to watch going into the final friendly. Jamaal Lascelles, Ciaran Clark, Florian Lejeune, and even Chancel Mbemba have performed well.

Top Toons

Matt Ritchie: His play against Wolfsburg was exactly what Toon Army has come to expect from Ritchie. He played full throttle his entire appearance and didn’t allow the opposing backline a moment to rest. The winger also beautifully struck a free kick for the second Newcastle goal.

Christian Atsu: He scored the final goal of the match for the Magpies and it was certainly not a screamer. The speedster ran unmarked to the back post to softly tap home Jonjo Shelvey’s pass. His pace and pressure helped keep the heat on Wolfburg’s defense.

Aleksandar Mitrovic: While his conversion numbers weren’t great, Mitro looked active and motivated this time out. He scored the match’s first goal and put himself in position to potentially score a few more. Quality shift from the Serbian striker.

Next: Newcastle United impress in a 3-1 win over Wolfsburg

Mediocre Magpies

Paul Dummett: Another dud for Dummett. He fouled in the box to give Wolfburg a penalty, which they converted. If there was a strong candidate at left back, Dummett may be playing more motivated soccer. He’s likely the only person happy with the lack of depth at that position.

Siem de Jong: After a promising performance in the first friendly this preseason, de Jong has been underwhelming in the outings since. His distribution was average and he missed a header that should’ve been a goal.

Mohamed Diame: Like de Jong, Diame’s play may have cemented Ayoze Perez as the starting number 10. He’s looking too much like the disappointing 2016-17 version of himself after he vowed to come back stronger this season.

What’s Next

Newcastle United will close out their preseason friendly schedule at home against Serie A side Hellas Verona. That match will take place Saturday, eight days ahead of the EPL opener against Tottenham. The squad for the Verona friendly will likely closely mirror the squad for the Spurs match.