Embarrassing friendly result adds extra pressure on Newcastle United

Newcastle United suffered a heavy, embarrassing defeat to Middlesbrough earlier today.

Newcastle United have competed in three preseason friendlies this summer, with their fourth friendly set to take place on September 5th against Stoke City at St. James’ Park.

The Magpies got the job done against Crewe Alexandra (3-0) and Barnsley (2-1), but were embarrassed 5-1 by Middlesbrough at their training facility today.

Teams managed by Neil Warnock are not known for scoring goals, but they cruised past Newcastle United. Fans were wondering why Newcastle United failed to provide any updates regarding the friendly as they did with the first two games, but it became crystal clear when Boro announced the final result on social media.

The club did not report the starting lineups, so fans do not know how strong of a team Newcastle United deployed, but regardless of who played, a Premier League side should not be getting thrashed by four goals to a Championship outfit.

The two key details fans do know of is that Allan Saint-Maximin scored the lone goal for the Magpies, and captain Jamaal Lascelles lost his cool in an altercation, which saw him get sent off.

This heavy defeat was the last thing Newcastle United needed just 11 days before lacing up for the 2020-21 campaign.

This result now adds extra pressure on the team to re-gain their focus and perform consistently. Friendlies should never be taken too seriously, but this result was eye-popping and raises a few red flags.

Was it the tactics? Was it a lazy performance? It does not matter. Things need to change quickly. Steve Bruce needs to up his criticism of players who dropped the ball today, and hold them accountable.

Fans will be hoping to see some new talent with Premier League experience walk through the doors of St. James’ Park over the next week in order to save the season.

According to recent reports, a free deal for winger Ryan Fraser is close, and Bournemouth are considering a cash plus swap deal for Callum Wilson that would see Matt Ritchie move to south coast.