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Bamba moment Jaissle loved as Newcastle star repays transfer faith - 5 things

Chronicle Live · Sean McCormick · 2026-08-16T18:05:16+00:00 · nguồn gốc

Aladji Bamba moment Matthias Jaissle loved as Newcastle star repays transfer faith - 5 things Five things we learned from Newcastle's penalty shootout defeat to Strasbourg in their final friendly of the summer Newcastle were beaten on penalties in the second leg of the VisitMalta Weekender at St James' Park having played out a 1-1 draw with French side Strasbourg. Will Osula had opened the scoring with a poacher's finish in the first half but Gessime Yassine's second half equaliser forced a penalty shootout to determine the winners of the VisitMalta Trophy. Sean Neave and Bazoumana Toure confidently tucked away their spot-kicks but misses from Osula, Jacob Ramsey and Aladji Bamba rendered Ewen Jaouen's two saves meaningless as Strasbourg ran out 3-2 winners in the shootout. Here are five things we learned from Newcastle's final pre-season friendly of the summer. Get Chronicle Premium now for just £1 HERE – exclusive news and features, our NUFC and Academy notebooks, plus an ad-lite experience Aladji Bamba moment Matthias Jaissle and Jacob Murphy loved We saw glimpses yesterday that Newcastle are beginning to pick up on Jaissle's message, certainly when it comes to pressing, and there was one moment from Bamba that the new head coach particularly loved. Bamba pressed high, forced the Strasbourg backline into an error and picked up the ball in a dangerous position and fed Osula through on goal. The Denmark international's cutback found Toure eight yards out but he blazed his right footed effort over the crossbar. Jaissle shouted over his approval to Bamba and Jacob Murphy sought him out for a congratulatory hug, with both men loving the 20-year-old's commitment to winning the ball high up the pitch. Toure was bright, though, too, and both players have given Jaissle a decision to make when it comes to his midfield and winger selections against Liverpool next week. Certainly, that was Bamba's best showing in a Newcastle shirt to date and he plays with a calmness that belies his tender age, while Jaouen should take great confidence from a brilliant late save to force penalties before saving two out of five penalties he faced in the shootout. Will Osula justifies Newcastle faith Newcastle insiders remain so confident Osula will become a leading Premier League forward in the near future and are confident he will prove his goalscoring run at the end of last season was no fluke. Indeed, Chronicle Live understands there has been plenty of interest in Osula's services this summer and the Magpies have not even entertained selling him. Instead, they believe he can have a big season under Jaissle and he began to repay that faith with a goal in today's win over Strasbourg, bulleting a header past Strasbourg goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen to open the scoring. He had a couple of other chances to add to his tally and he probably does need to be more ruthless and decisive, particularly when he has time to think with the ball at his feet. But he is surely a favourite to start up front against Liverpool and the question is whether that will be alongside or instead of Yoane Wissa, who has also enjoyed an excellent pre-season, building on a positive World Cup campaign with DR Congo. Old guard show their worth Dan Burn and Fabian Schar's experience in a backline that also included youngsters Leo Shahar and Dylan Charlton was a reassuring constant in a summer of change. Both men are 34 now but still have plenty of life in them and Burn returned with an elevated air of confidence that should be present in a summer which saw him star in England's run to the World Cup semi-finals as well as being named captain of his boyhood club. But away from the backline, Murphy impressed, creating Osula's goal and also creating a number of other gilt-edged chances, too. Joe Willock had a good game in the No 10 role and despite the possibility of both players leaving this summer they sent a timely reminder of the qualities they still possess. Meanwhile, Jacob Ramsey had a very good game in midfield, and was probably the best player on the pitch until he lost the ball on the edge of the penalty area for Strasbourg's equalising goal. Jaissle was furious on the touchline as he angrily vented in German towards his coaching staff. That should not detract from what was a fine performance from the former Villa midfielder otherwise, though. In a summer where Jaissle has handed academy lads opportunities and the club have pivoted to signing talented young players, it served as a reminder that the Magpies still have some experienced lads ready to step up. Strasbourg's dire pre-season record A draw against a Strasbourg side who have been exposed to European football in recent seasons should, on the face of it, not be seen as a negative but there is one glaring caveat. The French side had lost all five of their pre-season matches this summer heading into the game, with a brutal 7-0 defeat to Sporting CP followed by a 2-0 loss to Blackburn Rovers, a 4-3 defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion, a 5-2 hammering by Elversberg and a 2-0 defeat to Freiburg. Their shootout win over Newcastle ended that dire record and while victory or defeat today should always be viewed in the lens of pre-season, it felt like an opportunity missed to end the summer on a high. NUFC Women lose In what was a tough test against last season's Italian runners up, Tanya Oxtoby's side gave a good account of themselves but were ultimately beaten 2-0 by Inter Milan. Goals from Marie Detruyer and Elisa Polli sealed the win in front of a healthy crowd who got inside St James' Park early to watch the lasses. Oxtoby's side will have increased exposure to St James' Park this season as they bid to win promotion to the WSL. They will now jet off to Spain for a warm weather training camp that will see them take in friendlies against Valencia and Manchester United.