Malick Thiaw opens up on keeping 'best striker' quiet for 90 minutes on Saturday
Malick Thiaw was on media duty for Newcastle United ahead of their Champions League game against Marseille on Tuesday night.
As is tradition, Eddie Howe must select a player to face questions from the media ahead of a Champions League game and this time around he chose Malick Thiaw.
The German international defender is fresh off the back of one of his best performances for Newcastle since his move from AC Milan.
Thiaw kept Erling Haaland completely quiet all game on Saturday and produced one of the tackles of the season to stop the giant Norwegian dead in his tracks.
Malick Thiaw said he had extra motivation when playing against Erling Haaland on Saturday
Unsurprisingly, Thiaw was asked during Monday's press conference how he feels about keeping Haaland in his pocket all game on Saturday, with the German saying playing against the best inspires you to be better.
"I’m a really confident player but if you play against one of the best players, maybe the best striker right now, it can give you a little bit of extra motivation and confidence. Of course I will take that."
While Marseille don't have an Erling Haaland, they're not exactly short on attacking talent with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in their ranks, so Thiaw will have to be awake again. The former France international may be 36, but he can still cause problems.
Malick Thiaw must be one of the first names on Eddie Howe's team sheet
After seeing Thiaw on Saturday, though, we back him against anyone. If he can keep Erling Haaland quiet, then there's no reason to fear any striker.
Thiaw must be one of the first names on the team sheet these days, after Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali.
To think that AC Milan fans used to think he wasn't good enough to play regularly for them. You just need that Eddie Howe touch.
