Newcastle United will hope their 2-1 friendly win against Lillestrom can instill some much needed confidence into the side. The win came in Spain where the North East outfit are currently training.
A confidence booster
Georginio Wijnaldum opened the scoring after just three minutes before Lillestrom hit back. The Norwegian side piled on the pressure throughout the first half.
Youngster Rolando Aarons caught the eye with his performance and grabbed the winning goal after a cross from fellow under-21 teammate Jamie Sterry.
The match was a perfect opportunity for some senior players to get some much needed game time after spells on the sideline. New signings Seydou Doumbia and Henri Saivet both played 90 minutes which is a huge boost. Emmanuel Riviere also featured after a lengthy break.
Jonjo Shelvey captained the side due to Fabricio Colocinni being on the bench.
Warm weather training comes to an end
The friendly match marks the end of Newcastle's warm weather training at La Manga training club. The break will be welcomed after the Magpies 5-1 defeat to Chelsea last week.
The trip away may be classed as a success by Steve McClaren and his backroom team due to the fact no more injuries have been picked up by any players. We won't know whether the training has been a true success until Newcastle play their next two or three games.
What lies ahead?
When Newcastle return to action, after an 18 day break, they face two games in quick succession as they travel to Stoke City before welcoming Bournemouth to St James' Park. They currently lie 18th in the table on goal difference after the drubbing at Chelsea.
It is imperative Newcastle pick up points aganst teams around them at the bottom of the table and they have a good chance of doing that against Bournemouth and relegation rivals Sunderland in the next few weeks.