Newcastle United have put themselves in a difficult situation after losing a second crucial game against Borussia Dortmund.
Eddie Howe’s side looked tired and lacked a bit of creativity after what has been an intense few weeks with the injury list piling up.
Valentino Livramento’s performance was one positive on a disappointing evening for the Toon and the defender has had his say on what went wrong in Germany.
After a victory for AC Milan against PSG, Newcastle have fallen to the bottom of Group F in the Champions League and have given themselves plenty of work to do with two games remaining.
Livramento says Newcastle had a rare off day against Dortmund
There were chances in the game which Newcastle could have and probably should have taken, Joelinton’s second-half header in particular comes to mind.
But the overall performance, especially in the first half, felt a bit flat and like the amount of games was finally catching up to a very depleted squad.
Livramento spoke to NUFCTV after the game to address what went wrong.
“Going 1-0 down and coming out in the second half we were still in the game. We had chances to get one back but it’s not how the game panned out.
“We conceded again which was tough but we just need to pick ourselves up for another big game on Saturday.
“With the second goal we need to be more together as a team, when you concede two it’s tough.
“I thought we’d done well but we can’t use it [injuries] as an excuse, the players that have come in have been really good, we just didn’t get it right.”
Newcastle’s shining light in disappointing night in Dortmund
Livramento has already picked up two man-of-the-match performances in his last two starts for Newcastle, both coming in the Carabao Cup and against two top teams.
The £32m defender again shone for the Toon in Germany despite starting the game as a right-winger before dropping to right-back and eventually moving over to left-back.
His defensive work one-on-one has been excellent while he has also proven to be quality player on the ball making driving runs into the opposition’s half.
Though it’s not ideal, the unfortunate injury crisis has given the former Southampton and Chelsea man the opportunity to impress and it’s difficult to see how he doesn’t become an important part of this team moving forwards.
Under the guidance of Kieran Trippier there is no telling how far this young star could go, but he has already shown potential to be one of Europe’s top defenders.
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