Rafa Benitez made three solid substitutes on Saturday, but none of them could rescue Newcastle United.
Yesterday’s match was a frustrating one for Newcastle United. West Brom came into St. James’ Park and showed a sense of urgency and took all three points. Trailing by one in the second half, Rafa Benitez knew he needed a spark and would use all three of his substitutes. While all the choices made sense, the substitutes couldn’t salvage the match.
Jacob Murphy for Paul Dummett (58th minute)
This match was desperate for some pace on the Newcastle United side. With Christian Atsu still dealing with an injury, Jacob Murphy would be the first player off the bench to bring that spark. He replaced Paul Dummett and pushed Kenedy back to left back. Unfortunately, the summer signing couldn’t make a statement.
He made a careless pass out of play and also stopped a run when DeAndre Yedlin played a ball through to him. His speed was welcome but couldn’t unlock anything for the Toon.
Islam Slimani for Dwight Gayle (66th minute)
After starting against Everton, Slimani returned to the bench against West Brom. He came on to replace a largely ineffective Dwight Gayle.
He was a big boost off the bench in previous appearances, but not so much yesterday. He wasn’t able to run into channels or get on the end of passes. That’s largely due to poor passing from Newcastle United, but he also didn’t seem to have much bounce in his step. His appearance should have ended before the final whistle as he lashed out at a West Brom player after he seemed to step on Slimani’s foot. There will surely be a review and a likely suspension.
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Joselu for Ayoze Perez (78th minute)
The final substitute was to replace Ayoze Perez, who finished with zero shots on the day. Joselu had a brief cameo but could’ve been the hero. He rose to meet a cross at the far post, but his header went wide. Scoring that goal would’ve been a positive moment in a largely negative first season for the striker.