Advertisement

Newcastle duo beat Arsenal, Man City and AC Milan stars into Champions League Team of the Week

Dan Burn stepped up to the occasion on Tuesday (Image: Getty Images)
Dan Burn stepped up to the occasion on Tuesday (Image: Getty Images)

Newcastle United impressed with a dogged first Champions League performance away at AC Milan this week and two Magpies stars have found themselves in the competition's Team of the Week.

After last night's fixtures, the first round of Group Stage matches has come to a close and European action will return at the beginning of October, when Newcastle United welcome Paris Saint-Germain to St James' Park in what is set to be an unforgettable night.

Eddie Howe's side already have a point on the board in the so-called 'group of death' and earned that with an organised and tenacious showing in Italy.

The meeting with AC Milan finished 0-0, so it's perhaps no surprise that the two Newcastle United stars heralded as the best in the competition this week are from the Magpies back line.

Goalkeeper Nick Pope was inspired during the fixture and kept a clean sheet despite facing 25 shots from a dominant home side. WhoScored rank players' performances in matches and have used that system to showcase the Team of the Week, with Pope's 8.4 score making him a shoo-in between the sticks.

Speaking after the match, Pope said: "I was really proud of the lads for their resilience and the character that we showed to get the point. It's a difficult place to come and it was also a quick turn-around from the weekend. But I am really proud of the boys for what they gave on and off the ball. They protected my goal.

"Obviously we couldn't get the goal at the other end, but it was a tremendous effort."

Pope has company in the Champions League Team of the Week from none other than giant Geordie full-back Dan Burn. The 31-year-old former Blyth Spartans youth product was assured in defence and registered a 7.8 score on WhoScored.

The Champions League Team of the Week is: