Allan Saint-Maximin got the vast majority of plaudits for the part he played in the crucial 2-1 win over Burnley and rightly so but Geordie midfielder Sean Longstaff also put in a fine display.
It’s far to say Sean has had a torrid time at his hometown club over the last few seasons, with the flashes of brilliance that he showcased in his first run in the team few and far between.
It was great to see that there is still that player in there somewhere and his second half display in particular will have pleased Toon fans.
The home-grown lad will undoubtedly have felt just as aggrieved as all of the fans when Anthony Taylor and the brains trust at Stockley Park inexplicably denied United a stonewall penalty in the first half.
What he did well was win the ball back which eased a lot of pressure on the team which in turn meant there wasn’t too many nervy moments as we looked to hang on to the slender advantage given to us by the brilliance of Allan Saint-Maximin.
This is what he excelled at during his breakthrough season under Rafa Benitez and for 45 minutes, it was like the clocks had been turned back to before his injury picked up at the London Stadium and before he was forced to work under a useless buffoon like Steve Bruce.
It’s no accident that Manchester United were linked with a huge £50M move for Longstaff, he was that good in the nine games he played that season.
Many were quick to draw comparisons to Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher, he did the simple stuff exceptionally well and the goal he scored against Burnley that season was a truly great moment at St. James’ Park.
So what now for the 23-year old midfielder? Bruce has finally given him the nod and Longstaff has done himself no harm in his performances.
He will be up against one of the league’s top performing central midfielders in Tomas Soucek next week and he will certainly be a massive challenge.
These are the type of challenges that he needs to come through with flying colours as he looks to continue his road to recovery to previous form.