Union Saint-Gilloise 0 Newcastle 4 – Match ratings and comments on all Newcastle United players | OneFootball

We asked Mark Jankowski to give us his match ratings and player comments after Union Saint-Gilloise 0 Newcastle 4.

Pope 8

Despite the comfortable nature of Newcastle’s win, Nick Pope was still required to make a few good saves.

He executed all of these really well and even looked fairly comfortable with the ball at his feet, a solid performance from our number one.

Trippier 8

Easily Kieran Trippier’s best performance of the season. He backed up Anthony Elanga really well all night.

He was assured in defence and was constantly trying to thread balls forward for our attackers to capitalise on.

Thiaw 8

I wasn’t 100% convinced that Thiaw was ready for the Premier League when we signed him over the summer but I’ve been converted to a believer.

He’s been simply incredible since coming into the side for Schar and I can’t see any way in which he gets dropped moving forward.

Botman 9

Out of sight out of mind is the phrase that springs to the fore when thinking about Sven Botman.

He’s endured a tricky couple of years but his performances over recent weeks have demonstrated why he was so loved in the run to the Champions League a couple of years ago.

He’s an absolute colossus at the back and the quality footballer to boot.

Burn 7

A really solid first half performance from Dan Burn was followed up by a slightly shaky start to the second half after Union SG changed their formation slightly.

Eventually, Newcastle’s dominance paid off and all in all it was a fairly solid performance from Burn.

However, moving forward we need to be playing specialist full-backs in the team, especially as we are so talented in those positions.

Bruno 8

A really energetic performance from our captain who showed his quality on the ball on several occasions.

He’s got such a quick mind when in possession, he makes a really big difference in helping Newcastle transition the ball up the field quickly.

Tonali 10 (Man of the Match)

I’m running out of ways to describe how brilliant Sandro Tonali is, but for my money he’s not only Newcastle’s best midfielder, he’s arguably the best midfielder in the Premier League.

A master class performance from the Italian. He covered every blade of grass out of possession and was incisive in possession.

He was instrumental in our first goal and was very unlucky not to round off the performance with a fifth at the end of the game.

Joelinton 7

A relatively quiet performance from big Joe this evening.

Truth be told, he shines in games when Newcastle don’t have an awful lot of the ball.

However, his performance tonight showed what a good player he is on. He linked up well with his fellow midfielders to dominate that area of the pitch.

Elanga 8

Another player putting in his season’s best performance tonight, Anthony Elanga was a threat from minute one.

I got in a bit of the debate with a friend about his performance, specifically the number of times he fails to complete a dribble or a pass.

However, it’s difficult to argue that he didn’t have a massive effect on the game in the possessions he did manage to complete successfully.

He was heavily involved in the first two goals and was unlucky not to tuck one in himself at the beginning of the second half.

Woltemade 8

It’s only a handful of performances so far for the big German but he’s managed to bag a goal in three of those already.

If you can get the ball into his feet I’m not sure there are many players around who can take it off him.

He was absolutely brilliant in some of his link-up play and executed a smart finish to bag the opening goal of the game.

Gordon 9

The final player putting in a season’s best performance from the starting line up, Anthony Gordon was at his effervescent best this evening.

He was a constant menace in possession and worked really hard off of the ball. He slotted away two really good penalties and wasn’t far off being man of the match.

Subs

Miley 7

Some more good minutes for the young man.

He showed some nice touches on the ball and was confident in trying to progress the play.

He still shows signs of inexperience of the odd loose pass but every minute we can get into Miley will pay off in the long run.

Osula 7

Seems to be full of confidence at the moment. His driving run was instrumental in Barnes’s goal.

If he can deliver more cameo appearances in this vein then he will make some really big contributions across the rest of the season.

Barnes 8

A dynamic and driving performance from Barnes in his brief time on the pitch, topped off with a well-taken goal.

Barnes does look his best when making an impact off the bench.

If he can build some confidence in performances like this, it can only stand him in good stead moving forward.

Hall 7

Lewis Hall will be top of my list to make a start against Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

He looks so natural at left-back that it makes it difficult to argue to keep Dan Burn in the side in that position.

With Tino’s injury taking him out of contention for the next couple of months. Lewis Hall is going to be a big player moving forward.

Schar N/A (Not on long enough to rate)

Union Saint-Gilloise 0 Newcastle 4 – Wednesday 1 October 2025 5.45pm

(Stats via BBC Sport)

Goals:

Newcastle United:

Woltemade 17, Gordon 43 pen, 64 pen, Barnes 80

Union S-G:

Possession was Newcastle 57% Union S-G 43%

Total shots were Newcastle 13 Union S-G 17

Shots on target were Newcastle 6 Union S-G 6

Corners were Newcastle 5 Union S-G 7

Touches in the box Newcastle 24 Union S-G 15

Newcastle team v Union S-G:

Pope, Trippier (Schar 83), Thiaw, Botman, Burn, Bruno (Hall 73), Joelinton (Miley 59), Tonali, Gordon, Woltemade (Osula 73), Elanga (Barnes 73)

Unused subs:

Ramsdale, Thompson, Krafth, Willock, Jacob Murphy, Alex Murphy

((Union Saint-Gilloise 0 Newcastle 4 – Instant Newcastle United fan/writer reaction – Read HERE)

(Union Saint-Gilloise 0 Newcastle 4 – Champions League arrival! – Read HERE)

Newcastle United fixtures (All of the Champions League matches will also be available to watch on TV in the UK):

Sunday 5 October– Newcastle v Forest (2pm) Sky Sports

Saturday 18 October – Brighton v Newcastle (3pm)

Tuesday 21st October: Newcastle United vs Benfica (8pm)

Saturday 25 October – Newcastle v Fulham (3pm)

Sunday 2 November – West Ham v Newcastle (2pm) Sky Sports

Wednesday 5th November: Newcastle United vs Athletic Club (8pm)

Sunday 9 November – Brentford v Newcastle (2pm) Sky Sports

Saturday 22 November – Newcastle v Man City (5.30pm) Sky Sports