Newcastle 3-1 Brentford: Dan Burn over Sandro Tonali

Newcastle defender Dan Burn says teammate Sandro Tonali’s “real composure” makes him suitable for the deeper role he held in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup quarter-final win Brentford.

24-year-old Italian midfielder Tonali scored the first two goals of the 3-1 win and controlled the midfield for long stretches in an impressive performance.

Manager Eddie Howe says Newcastle are finally “getting the best out of their £55million new signing”, who returned this season after a 10-month ban for breaching betting rules.

“He (Tonali) is great – he’s just so calm,” Burn told BBC Radio Newcastle. “He’s one of those players who never seems too excited or too down. He has this real composure about him.”

“I think you can see his quality – one-touch pass, he’s always looking to get forward and does a great job defensively.”

“For me, it’s great when you have someone who can take the information you give them from a defensive perspective. I think he did a great job with that.”

When the Carabao Cup final is played in March it will be 70 years since the Magpies last won the domestic title, but Burn believes his side have the quality to be one after losing to Manchester United in the 2023 final to reach another top tournament.

“It’s something to look forward to,” he said. “We still have a lot of games to go before then, but we want to play everyone in two games, so we’ll see who we get.”

Listen to the full chat and hear from Howe on BBC Sounds