Newcastle United’s U23s were beaten 2-1 by Leeds United today at Thorp Arch, with the Whites getting revenge on the Magpies after their comeback victory back in December.
The PL2 Division 2 leaders made it 11 home wins out of 12 with the victory, with Joe Gelhardt and Charlie Cresswell scoring the goals for the hosts.
There was a reply from Newcastle’s Christian Atsu, but it turned out to be a mere consolation.
It was a good second-half from Peter Ramage and Chris Hogg’s side, but there was to be no comeback this time around.
In terms of standouts for Newcastle, there was one star who caught the eye, as he has done multiple times this season.
In their Player Ratings piece, Leeds Live reported how Robin Koch got on in West Yorkshire, stating: “Newcastle’s edge meant it was a good game for Koch to test himself.
“He did a reasonable job of tracking and limiting the influence of the visitors’ most effective player: Elliot Anderson.”
Chronicle Live also wrote that Anderson ‘showed his quality’.
Sending a message to Bruce?
Anderson did miss a couple of good chances to score and earn the 23s a point against Leeds, but at least he was still in fine fettle overall.
Anderson has not been selected by Steve Bruce for any of his matchday squads since the victory over Southampton last month, something many people have been unable to fathom.
Right now all he can do is keep performing for the U23s – hopefully such a talent will be rewarded with the first-team minutes he deserves.
The 60-year-old has spoken of his need to call on experienced players at Anderson’s expense (via Shields Gazette), and all he can really do is get his head down.
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