Newcastle United 2-0 Huddersfield Town: Miguel Almiron impresses on full debut

Record Newcastle signing Miguel Almiron's impressive full debut against Huddersfield shows he has "the right mentality" to succeed in the Premier League, says manager Rafael Benitez.

The Paraguay forward, who arrived for £21m from MLS side Atlanta United, helped Benitez's side ease past 10-man Town and move four points clear of the relegation zone.

After Newcastle missed several chances in the first half, striker Salomon Rondon swept in the opener 59 seconds into the second period.

Ayoze Perez drilled in the second, although Almiron could not add the goal his display deserved.

Huddersfield, who stay marooned at the bottom of the table, had skipper Tommy Smith sent off after 20 minutes for a high tackle on Almiron.

"Everything we have seen is what we were expecting from him," Benitez said. "Obviously, the defenders from the other teams will know him a little bit better now and it will be more difficult for him.

"But still, he is someone who is working really hard, so I think he can do well.

"Now he has to learn in the Premier League to understand what the physicality of the game means here, but I think he has the right mentality."

Newcastle recorded their third successive Premier League win at St James' Park - for the first time since last April - to move up to 15th.

United boss Benitez's only gripe may be that they should have won by a more convincing margin against a Huddersfield side that managed only one shot on target.

Newcastle's Kenedy and Sean Longstaff both hit the woodwork in the final half-hour, while Huddersfield goalkeeper Jonas Lossl produced some superb saves as the home side peppered the away goal with 29 shots.

Town have lost all four of their matches under new manager Jan Siewert and remain 14 points adrift of safety.

Excitement and expectation has accompanied Almiron's arrival on Tyneside, with the 25-year-old becoming their most expensive signing since former England striker Michael Owen joined from Real Madrid in 2005.

The Paraguayan was handed his full debut by Benitez after coming on as a substitute at Wolves earlier this month - and he did not disappoint the home fans with a sharp performance.

The £21m signing, who started on the left of a front three alongside Rondon and Perez, caused problems for the visitors with his pace, while showing enough trickery and awareness to suggest he will have a major impact at St James' Park.

Although he could not cap an impressive performance with a goal, he came mighty close.

Almiron hit the post in the 12th minute with a confident chip over Lossl, racing clean through following a nice passing move from the home side.

Two other first-half opportunities saw him almost open the scoring - an instinctive left-foot strike stopped low to his right by an alert Lossl and another that squirmed under the keeper before defender Chris Lowe hacked away from his goalline.

Almiron also played a key role in another of the game's pivotal moments, forcing a desperate lunge out of right-back Smith that left referee Kevin Friend reaching for the red card.

In the second half, he continued to pose problems for Huddersfield and it was unsurprising to see him receive a loud and standing ovation when he was substituted in the 81st minute.

"You saw today he can make a massive difference to us, he is a quality player," Perez said.

Huddersfield's time in the Premier League looks set to end in May after a two-season stay, barring an extraordinary - and on this evidence unlikely - turnaround in their form.

After defying the odds to stay up last season, Town's deficiencies - namely scoring goals - have been laid bare this campaign.

Town appointed 36-year-old Siewert, who like his predecessor David Wagner came from Borussia Dortmund's second team, last month and he started his reign by presiding over defeats to Everton, Chelsea and Arsenal.

While there were some positives to take against sides expected to beat them comfortably, Saturday's trip to a team also in the bottom six before kick-off provided little comfort.

This time their inability to cause any problems was created by playing with a numerical disadvantage for over 70 minutes.

Smith could have few complaints for seeing red, despite protesting his innocence and looking shocked when Friend sent him off, and from that point anything other than a Newcastle win looked unlikely.

"The red card broke our neck - before that we had the possibility of possession and chances. It changed the situation of the game," Siewert said.

"I don't want to complain about anything. I haven't seen the red card again - I have to see it and then make my mind up."

Town have now taken only one point in their past 14 league matches and it looks as though the extent of Siewart's impact in West Yorkshire will not be fully evident until next season - most likely in the Championship.

Both sides are back in Premier League action on Tuesday. Newcastle look for a fourth straight home league win when they host Burnley at St James' Park at 20:00 GMT, while Huddersfield aim to end their winless run when they play Wolves at John Smith's Stadium at 19:45.