Eddie Howe praises Pope after his excellent display in Newcastle’s 2-1 win over Wolves
Newcastle United maintained their unbeaten start to the new Premier League campaign as they beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 at the Molineux Stadium.
The hosts were in the ascendancy after Mario Lemina fired the opener in the 36th minute.
Manager Eddie Howe made several changes at the break, introducing Harvey Barnes, Sandro Tonali and Joe Willock for Alexander Isak, Sean Longstaff and Joelinton.
The changes seemed to work as Fabian Schar cut the deficit with a superb 30-yard effort on 75 minutes. Barnes then produced a long-range stunner to seal all points for the visitors.
However, the Magpies’ victory wouldn’t have been possible without the two crucial second-half saves from Nick Pope.
The 32-year-old denied Jorgen Strand Larsen’s near-post strike before pushing Matheus Cunha’s goal-bound effort around the post in injury-time.
Eddie Howe said he was very pleased with Pope after his brilliant display between the sticks on Sunday.
He said (per The Northern Echo): “I’m really pleased for Nick. Whenever a player goes away on international duty, it’s always a different dynamic.
“With the players that we keen here, we can really focus on what they’re doing and we’re in tune with their performances.
“When players go away, they miss our contact time and there’s always that trust about how they’re going to come back.
“But you can see how Nick has come back, and the effect he has on the team. He made two or three great saves that ultimately end up helping us win the game. He’s a top-class goalkeeper and I’m delighted for him.”
Newcastle had a disappointing summer transfer window as they failed to land their key targets.
They undertook a month-long pursuit of Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi but ultimately failed to get a deal over the line.
Despite the lack of quality additions this summer, the Magpies have made an impressive start to the 2024-25 campaign so far.
They have picked up 10 points from their opening four matches, beating Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur and recently Wolves in the process.
