Grumblings of an early crisis on Tyneside appear to have been hugely premature on the back of another Newcastle United victory on Saturday, their third straight in the Premier League. With a 2-1 win against Stoke City, Newcastle climbed into the Champions League places and confirmed their finest start to life in England’s top division in six years.
Goals from Christian Atsu and inspirational captain Jamaal Lascelles were enough to overcome a fantastic strike from Xherdan Shaqiri and some extremely wasteful play from Newcastle striker Joselu. Joselu, of course, was playing against his former employers and keen to show that he should’ve been given more of a chance under Mark Hughes. He was given the chance to score a hat trick today but he spurned every opportunity before being mercifully replaced by Dwight Gayle in the 78th.
Xherdan Shaqiri https://t.co/tzCW5i5IKB
— Conman Fleming (@ConmanFleming) September 16, 2017
So Newcastle still don’t possess that world-class striking option that Rafa Benitez craves, but the supposedly unsettled manager will have been delighted with the commitment and desire shown by the likes of Ayoze Perez, Matt Ritchie and DeAndre Yedlin.
Yedlin made his Premier League debut with Newcastle after a spell on the sidelines because of a hamstring injury. He went the full 90 and was strong in defense for the Magpies, making three tackles, four clearances and an interception.
DeAndre Yedlin in #NEWSTK: 45 touches, 15/20 passes, 3 crosses, 4 clearances, 3 tackles, 3 recoveries, 1 int., 5 duels won. #NUFC #USMNT pic.twitter.com/cp53kkjDgz
— Jason Foster (@JogaBonitoUSA) September 16, 2017
He wasn’t as effective going forward as Toon supporters have come to expect, but Yedlin’s presence will still be a massive boost to both Newcastle and the United States when World Cup qualifying resumes with a crucial match against Panama on October 6. USMNT manager Bruce Arena will undoubtedly be pleased with what he saw from Yedlin on the pitch at Saint James’ Park.
Newcastle next travel to Brighton on September 24. Stoke play Bristol City in the League Cup on September 19 before hosting Chelsea on September 23.
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