Newcastle United suffered a 5-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur yesterday in what was one of the worst displays since Eddie Howe came in as manager.
The Magpies took the lead through Fabian Schar, but quickly conceded an equaliser to Ben Davies.
In the second-half, Spurs just blitzed the visitors, with Harry Kane and Heung-min Son completely controlling proceedings.
Newcastle were all at sea at the back.
It was extremely worrying to see how poor the marking was at times.
Newcastle had been fairly solid defensively since the turn of the year.
But yesterday’s game saw all the good work go of the window. And Eddie Howe will need to spend the coming days ensuring major work is done.
Javier Manquillo played at right-back, and the Spaniard lost his marker for Spurs’ first two goals.
Arguably, the result could have been very different had Newcastle had Kieran Trippier available.
The England international is still out nursing a metatarsal injury, but he was badly missed yesterday.
It’s possible he would have done a better job defensively than Manquillo.
It’s also very likely that his leadership could have come in extremely handy.
£12 million Trippier (BBC Sport) is a leader and a winner. The manner of the defeat in the end was unacceptable, and there’s no way he would have stood for standards dropping like they did. He would have done his absolutely utmost to keep Newcastle in the game.
Kieran Trippier’s return can’t come soon enough for Newcastle
On the whole Newcastle have managed OK without Trippier.
But it’s now three defeats in a row, and the next few games will be a real test of Newcastle’s mentality.
The Magpies now need the 31-year-old back as soon as possible.
Not only is he a brilliant player, but his sheer presence alone on that pitch is worth so much.
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