Newcastle United have slipped to another defeat in the Premier League, this time against Leeds United.
The Magpies were beaten 2-1 by the Whites at St. James’ Park, and it is now 11 games in all competitions without a win.
Newcastle were awful in the first-half and it seemed as though Leeds had the potential to run away with the game.
But the team actually showed a lot of quality and heart in the second half – two things that have been completely absent in recent weeks.
Whatever was said in the dressing room clearly had a huge effect, with Bruce’s players looking a totally different proposition in the second 45.
That Newcastle still lost the game is massively concerning, but at the very least there was some fight and some desire and in the end, they were actually somewhat unfortunate not to come away with anything.
Partly the reason for Newcastle’s second half improvement was down to the introduction of Allan Saint-Maximin.
The £16 million Frenchman (BBC Sport) wasn’t quite fit enough to start the game, and who knows how different the result could have been if he had.
The star was absolutely superb when he came on for Jacob Murphy just after the hour mark.
He was constantly looking to get at the Leeds defence and Luke Ayling in particular.
It really was a reminder of just how missed he has been, and his return is definite reason for optimism.
On social media, some Newcastle fans – although obviously gutted with the result – were delighted with his showing:
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