Emil Krafth performance vs Leicester is even greater given Eddie Howe’s comments

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Emil Krafth has become an unsung hero at Newcastle United in recent weeks.

The 27-year-old has had to play a lot of football since Kieran Trippier’s injury – which was a worrying thought back in February when the England international limped off against Aston Villa.

But Krafth has performed admirably, and has increased his levels even further over the past two games.

He was recalled to the starting XI after the Tottenham debacle, replacing Javi Manquillo for the clash with Wolves.

The Sweden international was excellent in the 1-0 win, and deservedly retained his place for the game against Leicester.

Krafth was even better on Sunday, and would have been Newcastle’s man of the match had it not been for Bruno Guimaraes’ heroic brace.

But the right-back deserves a lot of credit for his performance – especially given Eddie Howe’s post-match comments.

Emil Krafth wasn’t at 100% for Leicester victory

Following the 2-1 victory, Toon boss Howe spoke to BBC Newcastle. He was asked about Krafth’s performance, and gave some insight into the buildup to the game for the Swede.

“Emil – he was one of the players I spoke about pre-game that’d had an illness,” Howe said.

“He’d missed a couple of days’ training, so we didn’t see him yesterday. So for him to arrive at the stadium without that training behind him – I think you can see he cramped at the end and that’s down to the fact he’d been ill.

“He deserves a huge amount of credit today because it’s tough opponents. Harvey Barnes, especially, he came on fresh against Emil who was feeling a little bit rough and ill in the game. So full credit to him, I thought he was outstanding defensively today.”

That puts Krafth’s performance into even greater context. He was outstanding, as Howe says, and to do that while suffering with illness is commendable.

Bar a late yellow card, he was flawless. And we’ll give him a pass on the cynical foul given what Howe has said.

Krafth was tremendous once again in black and white, even making a goal-saving tackle in the second half.

The defender has really stepped up in recent weeks and has played an important role in Newcastle distancing themselves even further from the relegation zone.