FOR all of the riches of Newcastle United’s Saudi-led owners, it was a player they unearthed at a bargain price who ensured their one-year anniversary was celebrated with a resounding 5-1 victory.
Yes, even at £36million rising to £42m, Bruno Guimaraes was a steal. After just nine months on Tyneside, the Brazilian already feels like one of the most special to ever pull on the black and white stripes. And there is some competition.
He scored twice and was head and shoulders the game’s best player. He did not need his new bleached-blonde hairdo to stand out.
Bruno is the bow and arrow of this team. He sees things as if sat in the back row of the Gallowgate, so superior is his long-range vision. He’s not bad at close quarters, either. He sent Shandon Baptiste for the saveloys when flicking one way around his opponent before dashing the other and darting clear in the first half.
But that was one for the showreel. His goals were what mattered, an opening header before a fine blast to make it 3-1 to put the contest to bed in the second half.
The victory moves Newcastle into the top six and that is where Eddie Howe’s side should be aiming to stay, so impressive were they here. Not that they started too well.
Brentford thought they had the opener on 10 minutes, and it would have been deserved amid a period of dominance in which Newcastle were wobbling.
Sean Longstaff was caught in possession 40 yards out and within a matter of seconds the ball was in the back of the net, Bryan Mbeumo finishing from a Baptiste flick. But striker Ivan Toney, coming back from an offside position, was deemed to be interfering - he was, he stepped across defender Sven Botman - despite not touching the ball. The officials arrived at the right decision after a VAR review.
The home crowd had already heartily encouraged their team back to halfway, believing they were behind. The reprieval, then, was met with what felt like a momentum-shifting roar.
The concession served as the wake-up call United needed and, from then on, it was Brentford in a daze.
Newcastle were in front on 21 minutes. As far as training-ground routines go, this was an incredibly difficult one to execute. A short corner rolled to a right back who then has to sweep the ball behind the defence for the holding midfielder to arrive and finish at the far post. But when the right back is Kieran Trippier and the midfielder is Bruno, it looks ever so simple. It was not, of course.
Trippier’s cross was perfect and Bruno found the header to match, guiding home via the inside of the post with Raya’s fingertips not strong enough to divert any further.
It was 2-0 within seven minutes. This time, it was Raya’s feet which failed him. He passed straight to Callum Wilson who, while no doubt tempted to shoot, elected to square for Jacob Murphy and he gratefully finished from six yards. Wilson knows he needs goals to make a late charge for England’s World Cup squad. In that regard, it was an unselfish act.
Brentford did then make a game of it, at least for the 90 or seconds that separated their goal and Bruno’s second.
It was in the 54th minute that the visitors were, correctly, awarded a penalty following a Dan Burn handball. Toney, to this point, had played like the clumsy version of himself which had convinced Newcastle he was no good for the Premier League before selling him to League One Peterborough in 2018.
The striker no longer is that player - evidenced by his recent England call-up - and his cool conversion from the penalty spot momentarily silenced those fans who had sought to occasionally boo him here. They weren’t quiet for long.
Bruno gathered the ball 40 yards out, advanced another 15 and, when he was met with little resistance, smashed into the bottom corner. The game was now won.
Miguel Almiron added a fourth when pouncing on a loose pass-back and rounding Raya on 82 minutes, before Ethan Pinnock turned into his own net in stoppage-time.
