A valiant effort down a man was not enough for Newcastle United as they lose 2-1 to Wolves.
Newcastle United went down a goal early, went down a man in the second half, and lost this one in stoppage time. We take a deeper look at a deflating defeat for the Toon.
Top Toons
Salomon Rondon: The striker worked his tail off today, winning the ball, holding up play, and creating chances. He assisted on Ayoze’s goal, after nearly scoring on a free kick himself.
Ayoze Perez: For the second time this season, Ayoze glanced a header home for a crucial goal. He was also heavily involved in the attack all day and should have earned a penalty after wearing an elbow to the face.
Christian Atsu: It will be tough for Rafa Benitez to bench the winger. After a positive performance against Everton, he was a sparkplug for the Magpies again today.
Mediocre Magpies
DeAndre Yedlin: He added a poor touch and a poor decision to end up with a red card. The original mistake was bad enough, but he compounded it by pulling down Jota and getting sent off.
Kenedy: His appearance was brief, but his lack of hustle back on the match-winning counter attack for Wolves was unfortunate.
Matt Ritchie: Playing in a wing-back type role, Ritchie was okay in defense but poor in delivery. He’s relied on to provide quality crosses and he was not able to do that today.
Quick Kicks
- While I don’t think Matt Ritchie will ever be a full-time defender, it’s nice to know he can perform well in vital defensive moments. He had some shining plays at the back for the Magpies.
- Despite Rafa’s opinion, I think the red card on Yedlin was just. He denied a scoring chance with an obvious foul. I agree with Rafa on the thought that Willy Boly should have been sent off for his elbow of Ayoze.
- Speaking of Rafa, I did not like the decisions to sub off Rondon and Atsu. Both players were playing well and both substitutes disappointed in limited action.
- The other substitute, Javier Manquillo for Federico Fernandez, was a big one. The star summer signing left with a calf injury. His departure moved Yedlin into central defense and he’s been a major piece of Newcastle United’s success. Hopefully, the injury doesn’t force him to miss much time.
- Rondon is a handful for Premier League defenses. He has a great work rate and uses his physicality to impose his will. A true number nine that will often determine if Newcastle succeeds.
What’s Next?
Newcastle United will travel to face Huddersfield Town on Saturday. The Terriers lost 1-0 to Arsenal this weekend, their third consecutive loss.