Malick Thiaw and Nick Woltemade stunned by Newcastle 'maestro' who is an 'amazing player'

Newcastle United strolled to their first Champions League win of the campaign after beating Union Saint-Gilloise 4-0 in Wednesday’s early kick-off, and their Premier League excellence was clear to see in Belgium.

The Magpies led 2-0 by the time the interval came around, with a superbly improvised flick from new striker hero Nick Woltemade and a penalty from rapid winger Anthony Gordon giving them breathing space at half-time.

It was the England international’s second effort from the spot which put the Tyneside club three to the good shortly after the hour mark.

And when forward Harvey Barnes got in on the act, it marked a successful mission across the North Sea, with Newcastle putting three points on the board in the league phase of the competition.

There were brilliant performances all around, with new signing Anthony Elanga impressing on the right wing, whilst the Newcastle defence stood strong to deny Sebastian Pocognoli’s men getting on the scoresheet.

But one star in particular has come in for praise from his Newcastle teammates after a dominating performance that put the Magpies on the front foot from the get-go.

Newcastle star Sandro Tonali earns praise for ‘amazing’ Champions League performance

Sandro Tonali is no stranger to Champions League football, having featured 18 times in the competition for AC Milan prior to his move to St. James’ Park, before making three appearances under Eddie Howe in their previous run in the tournament.

That was clear to see on a famous night in Belgium, with the Italian controlling the midfield and properly stamping his authority on the game to bring home a precious win.

His shot after 16 minutes led to Woltemade’s clever flick to give Newcastle the lead, and he almost got on the scoresheet himself but for a smart late stop by USG goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen.

Tonali’s excellence didn’t go unnoticed by his teammates, with the Magpies star being inundated with compliments from his teammates after posting to Instagram.

Nick Woltemade wrote: “amazing player !!”, whilst defender Malick Thiaw named the former Brescia star as a “maestro”.

It’s clear that Tonali will not only be vital to Newcastle’s chances of qualifying for Europe again in the Premier League table, but their progression in the Champions League this season.

Steve Sidwell has also praised Sandro Tonali’s Champions League performance for Newcastle

It’s not just Newcastle players who are aware of Tonali’s performance.

Pundits were totally in awe of the Italian maestro’s outing in Brussels, with Sofascore stating that Tonali completed an impressive 89 percent of his passes, with one key pass and one big chance created in the process.

He also had a shot on target towards the end, and won four of his eight duels.

That wasn’t lost on former Premier League star Steve Sidwell, who was a part of TNT’s live coverage of the game.

The ex-Chelsea star said: “In this Newcastle side, he’s quickly becoming a legend in black and white, the fans absolutely love him.

“He can pick a pass, his array of passes is long and short, you can see here his link up play.

“He covers so much ground, does the hard yards as well, and just getting on the second ball and just reading the game, he’s excellent.

“I would love to have played alongside him. It would have made me look a better player, that’s for sure.”

If former Premier League midfielders are giving Tonali such credit, it’s easy to see why he cuts such an adored figure on Tyneside.

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