Opinion

Mixed reactions from Newcastle fans following Penalties defeat to Leicester

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Newcastle suffered a gut-wrenching defeat in a penalty shootout to Leicester City in the second round of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday, leaving fans disappointed.

A larger than expected 22,000-plus crowd turned up to see a changed Steve Bruce lineup compete admirably against a virtually full-strength Foxes team.

(Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The number of changes was a contentious issue for fans, particularly after Bruce claimed he was prioritising both cup competitions this season.

There should be a modicum of sympathy for the manager, with Joelinton running himself into the ground on Sunday, and Allan Saint-Maximin aggravating his hamstring injury.

(Photo by Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

But other first team players were on the bench, and some fans were pointing to why that was the case if they were allegedly not fit?

Karl Darlow came into the side for Martin Dubravka, which was a change that was always likely to happen, and Darlow put in an assured display, but could only save one of the penalties in the shootout.

Yoshinori Muto gave Newcastle hope

When Yoshinori Muto equalised – following an outrageous dive from left wing-back Jetro Willems – fans were hoping the team could snatch a win, that would have been unexpected given the two lineups.

(Photo by Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

But while some fans thought the under strength side but in a good performance, despite the defeat, others were angry at the number of changes made by Bruce.

Here are a selection of the replies: