TalkSPORT pundit claims £4m Newcastle player is making his teammates nervous

Add as preferred source on Google

Newcastle United are nowhere near having their best starting XI available, and that might be the case for the rest of the season.

That is because Nick Pope is currently out of action with a shoulder injury. He has had surgery after hurting himself in the 1-0 win over Manchester United, and could now miss up to five months of action.

In his absence, Martin Dubravka has the chance to prove his worth. Eddie Howe is putting his faith in the 34-year-old, but it has been a tough return to the side for the Slovakian.

On his first Premier League start of the season, Newcastle were beaten 3-0 by Everton. That was followed up with a 4-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.

Dubravka seriously struggled during the defeat in London. He was caught in no man’s land for the third goal, while the fourth came from a penalty that he had given away after a foul on Son Heung-Min.

His performance against Tottenham has certainly raised eyebrows, with a lot of fans now believing that the club need to sign a new goalkeeper when the January transfer window opens.

Perry Groves thinks Martin Dubravka is making Newcastle nervous

Now former Arsenal winger Perry Groves has discussed the goalkeeper situation at Newcastle on the TalkSPORT podcast Premier League All Access, and has admitted that he thinks Dubravka makes the rest of the Toon defence more nervous compared to when Pope is playing.

“Well the thing is, it sends that little bit of uncertainty through the back four doesn’t it?” he said.

“Nick Pope has been in brilliant form for Newcastle, his shot-stopping is really good. He’s not one of the best goalkeepers at playing out from the back with his feet, but Eddie Howe wasn’t worried about that was he? He just wanted to have that security at the back.”

Still time for Dubravka to ease Newcastle worries

The Newcastle defence has been noticeably poorer since Dubravka came into the side. In just two games, he has conceded seven goals. Whichever way you want to spin it, that is not a record to be proud of.

It has been a tough return to the starting XI for Dubravka, but he still has time to turn things around. There are five games until the January transfer window opens, meaning the £4million man still has time to settle back into the role and find his feet.

The thing is, Dubravka is probably better with his feet than Pope is, so the Newcastle players should get confidence from that fact. However, his return to the side appears to be having the opposite effect.

But, as Groves says, Pope provided a real sense of security in between the sticks, and it is a sense of security we are currently not getting from Dubravka. But he will get opportunities to change that, and fingers crossed he does.