Lascelles discusses the team’s mentality in recent interview

Jamaal Lascelles provided some new insight regarding the collective mindset of his teammates at Newcastle United.

In a recent interview, Jamaal Lascelles discussed what the overall mentality is like at Newcastle United after being in the relegation zone at this stage in the season. Newcastle United did well to climb the table before the international break with a win against Tottenham and a draw against Watford. The Magpies were, as expected, defeated by Liverpool at Anfield and have dropped back down to 18th place as a result. Here is what Lascelles had to say about this:

"We were in a decent position, a win against Spurs and draw against Watford . Now we need to push and get three points against Brighton.[…]After a loss you are disheartened and beating yourselves up. It was Liverpool, Champions League winners. There were some individual mistakes in there. We created chances. We can’t let our heads drop. It is a learning curve. We can’t be disheartened."

Lascelles is saying all the right things, but fans will obviously be more interested in seeing how the players react on the pitch. At this stage in the season it is fair to say that Saturday’s game against Brighton is the most important fixture for the Toon. Three points on Saturday would serve as a major boost ahead of some difficult opponents over the next month.

Lascelles also went on to say that the team’s primary objective when playing at St. James’ Park is to get off to a quick start and force the opposition to defend in their own half. The Magpies did show some of this offensive urgency against Watford, so we as fans can only hope we witness the team’s best offensive performance this weekend.

With only four goals from five games, the pressure is on Joelinton and Miguel Almiron to get the ball rolling with some goals. Newcastle United have struggled as a team to get the attacking duo sufficient touches on the ball, but Brighton’s back-line is vulnerable.

That being said, defensive stability will be just as important for Newcastle United. Based on his interview, Lascelles’ statements are encouraging and we at least know that players are using the team’s placement in the table as motivation to get a positive result this weekend.