Dan Burn captained Newcastle United for the first time since being announced as the club's new skipper, and his half-time cool-down turned into an unexpected moment of appreciation. As the cameras were off and most of the press box had retreated inside, Chronicle Live watched Burn bask in the applause of all four sides of St James' Park during his exercises.
First Chance to Congratulate
It was the stadium's first chance to congratulate the defender on captaining his boyhood club and his role in England's run to the World Cup semi-finals this summer. Burn's performances from the bench against Mexico and Norway have gone down in Three Lions folklore, and he returned to the side with an air of confidence that both achievements have surely elevated.
In a team full of youngsters, Burn was the experienced head in Newcastle's penalty shootout loss to Strasbourg, which had finished 1-1. He barked instructions when needed, led by example on the ball, and threw himself into two huge clearing headers to alleviate danger on his team's goal.
Jaissle's Decision
It spoke volumes that Jaissle picked Burn as Bruno Guimaraes' successor without actually seeing him play for Newcastle, but it was not a surprise. His journey from Asda to the Champions League and the World Cup is well documented, but being named captain is his proudest achievement.
"[I am] Very proud to be named club captain," Burn said after the game on Sunday. "I said it's something that, some things you can't really dream of when you're a kid, but for me that was a dream from very early on to be captain of Newcastle, so very grateful for the opportunity and looking forward to leading the lads this season."
Confidence and Leadership
Burn revealed that Jaissle pulled him and vice-captain Joelinton in on Thursday morning to discuss the role. "He pulled me and Joey [Joelinton] in on Thursday morning and just asked first what we would bring to the role and then asked if I'd want to be captain, and obviously I was never going to say no to that."
Sven Botman's stuttering form in pre-season strengthened Burn's case to start against Liverpool, despite just 45 minutes of pre-season action, and his assured display only affirmed it. He brought a calmness with a steeled edge that had been missing all summer, and Jaissle, who had 35-year-old Andreas Ulmer as captain in a young team during his time at RB Salzburg, feels Burn can carry his message on to the pitch.
Burn told Chronicle Live that his World Cup exploits saw him return with elevated confidence. "Yeah, a little bit," he said. "I feel like probably just my age as well, I feel like I've been around for a long time and played a lot of games, so I feel like I've probably just got that confidence built into me now, knowing that I can do it at this level."
He added: "Obviously I had a great summer, loved every minute of it, disappointed with the way that it ended, but I think it was important for me to have a few weeks where I could just have a mental recharge. Physically I felt good, but I wanted to be excited to come back and push on this season, so when I came back on Tuesday, that was how it went, and as I said, I'm very excited going into Liverpool again."
