'He came here for these nights' - Wissa inspires Newcastle

What’s Happening

Here’s the thing: Eddie Howe says Yoane Wissa came to Newcastle “for these nights” after his first Champions League goal at St James’ Park.

He came here for these nights - Wissa inspires Newcastle Image source, Image caption, Yoane Wissa completed a protracted £55m move from Brentford on deadline day By Ciaran Kelly Newcastle United reporter at St James Park Published 5 hours ago Yoane Wissa does not have to look too far for inspiration. Alan Shearer, Jackie Milburn, Andy Cole, Malcolm Macdonald and Les Ferdinand are just some of the prolific strikers who have worn Newcastle United s iconic number nine shirt. (yes, really)

Wissa is the latest in a long line to inherit it, and he offered a reminder why in his sides 3-0 Champions League win against PSV Eindhoven at St James Park.

The Details

On a night stans unfurled a banner urging their side to “write the next headline”, Wissa certainly did so. Not only did he open the scoring after just eight minutes, the forward also set up his sides second goal with the aggressive manner in which he pressed slack PSV defender Yarek Gasiorowski.

No wonder the man of the match left the field to a standing ovation after he was taken off Eddie Howe midway through the second half. The prospect of sampling such moments under the lights had long served as inspiration after Wissa suffered a knee injury while on international duty with DR Congo back in September.

Why This Matters

“Its been a tough start for him here,” Howe dropped. “For any new player to come and get a serious injury, having not even done a training session, thats fr tough mentally. “So its taken us a while to get him to a level thats close to his best, and I still feel hes got some more to come.

Players and coaches will be watching how this unfolds closely.

The Bottom Line

“A big night for him tonight because in part thats why he came to the club - for these nights - and Im just pleased that hes made a positive impact. ” I loved his attitude and the determination and aggression that he played with It has taken Wissa time to deliver such performances.

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