Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce is impressed by the performance of Christian Atsu following the attacker's return from injury.

After sitting out the Magpies' opening two Premier League matches of the campaign, the winger made his season debut as a 17th-minute substitute in a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur.

He capped his outing with the assist for the game's only goal and went on to start in the 1-1 draw with Watford in their last match before the international break.

"I've only really seen Christian since the back end of last week because of the stuff with the Africa Cup of Nations and being injured, but as soon as he's come in, he's handled the ball well," Bruce, who replaced Rafael Benitez as Newcastle manager in the summer, told the Newcastle Chronicle.

"Whether it's given him a new lease of life, I'm not sure, but I been very, very pleased with him.

"He's done very, very well. He ran himself to a standstill [against Watford] I have to tell you."

In-between the matches with Tottenham and Watford, Atsu also made an appearance in a League Cup clash with Leicester City.

The 27-year-old will hope to continue his good run when Newcastle play away to Liverpool on the Premier League's return after the international break on Saturday.

He was forced out of the Magpies' opening games due to an injury picked up while on international duty with Ghana at the Africa Cup of Nations in July.