Eddie Howe believes that Benfica proved to be the perfect opponents for Newcastle United as they look to warm up for their opening day of the season clash against Nottingham Forest.
The Magpies now have just two more friendly games to go - against Atalanta and Athletic Bilbao - before the visit of newly promoted Forest. And Howe is satisfied with where his team stand after a clutch of pre-season warm-up matches.
Reflecting on last night's defeat in Lisbon, Howe said: "I think when you look at their results over pre-season Benfica have had a very strong start.
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"Some of the fixtures they have played you can see they are very good in possession of the ball. But I thought it was an even game. I thought both teams played well and both teams had strong spells in the match so it was a really good test for us."
United now get to test themselves against Serie A and La Liga sides on successive days at St James' Park. Howe is looking forward to the next two tests.
He said: "It was just what we needed going into another weekend against strong opposition. We feel that when the Premier League kicks off we will be ready, that's what pre-season is for."
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