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Gouffran's Glee At Gallowgate Goal
Written by Newcastle Utd
Yoan Gouffran spoke to nufc.co.uk after scoring his first goal at St. James' Park in a 2-0 win over Leeds
By Anthony Marshall - Newcastle United Managing Editor
Yoan Gouffran hopes his maiden goal on Tyneside will be the first of many, after helping secure United's place in the last 16 of the Capital One Cup on Wednesday.
The French forward netted a stunning strike midway through the second half at St. James' Park as Newcastle beat Championship side Leeds 2-0, building on Papiss Cisse's first-half header.
Although it was Gouffran's fifth Magpies' goal since his arrival in January, it was his first on home soil, with the former Bordeaux man becoming something of an away-day specialist.
However, he is keen to put that to rest now and aims to find the back of the Gallowgate End net plenty more times this season.
"It was perhaps not the very best of my career but it was a really nice goal to score," Gouffran told nufc.co.uk following the final whistle.
"It was great to finally score at St. James' Park and more of a relief than anything. Before tonight I had only scored away from home, so hopefully this frees me up and I can get a few more here from now on.
"The noise when I scored was fantastic. The suppport was magnificent, as it is every single week.
"It was a great win and thankfully we didn't fall into the trap of getting beaten by a team from a lower division. We performed well.
"We had to get back into a positive frame of mind and get back to winning straight away after losing against Hull at the weekend. Keeping a clean sheet was a bonus as well, and this game has done everyone's confidence a lot of good."
Having scored with his eye-catching turn and shot from the edge of the box, Gouffran immediately made a beeline for the substitutes' bench, and he explained what - and who - was behind the celebration.
"I ran to see Bigi (Gael Bigirimana)," he explained.
"Bigi is someone I get on with really well. He always encourages me to shoot so I wanted to go to him and say thanks for believing in me."
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