Newcastle United needed to come from behind to beat Tranmere Rovers in the second-round of the Carabao Cup, in a game where Eddie Howe called upon more of his big-hitters than he would have liked.
The first-half at Prenton Park felt like the Newcastle of old. Memories of recent cup ties against Burnley and Cambridge were starting to set in before Jamaal Lascelles levelled proceedings shortly before the half-time whistle.
Kieran Trippier, Sven Botman, Joelinton, Bruno Guimaraes and Jamal Lewis were all used off the bench as Newcastle struggled to put the League Two side to bed. Roughly £145m worth of transfer talent came on in total to try and change the game.
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Trippier was the key man in the fight back, sending dead balls into dangerous areas where his team-mates were there to capitalise. Chris Wood's goal came from a driven, pinpoint corner from the Newcastle right-back after weeks of set pieces being floated in towards Dan Burn at the back post.
Guimaraes came on to offer some much-needed experience in the final moments of the tie, Joelinton's brute strength was required to ruffle Tranmere feathers and Botman's introduction coincided with Lascelles' bloody nose finally getting the better of him.
Of course, it was an early round cup tie and Newcastle's best players weren't going to be used from the outset. But the hope is that in the near future Eddie Howe will have that type of talent at his disposal off the bench in Premier League games too.
The Magpies boss' plan to build strength in depth is well under way. An entire new defence has been brought in over two transfer windows and the focus of the last six weeks has been to find a striker who can battle it out with Callum Wilson and Chris Wood.
The imminent addition of Alexander Isak will help bolster Newcastle's attacking ranks. Having the 22-year-old and a fully fit Wilson fighting for a starting XI place, with Chris Wood ready to fill in when needed, is another sign the Magpies are soon going to have an incredibly deep Premier League squad.
Isak's arrival will see Newcastle's spending surpass £200m since the October 2021 takeover. But the club have made a conscious commitment to signing the 'right' players, rather than a trigger-happy approach of paying over the odds for well-known superstars.
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