Newcastle United’s four match winning streak drew to a close at Goodison Park last night, as Theo Walcott scored the only goal of the game to give Everton a 1-0 win.
The Magpies have propelled themselves away from the relegation zone with a significant upturn in form since January but their hopes of securing a top-half finish took a hit following the narrow defeat on Merseyside.
Fans were given the chance to see Leicester City loanee Islam Slimani in action again, making his first start for the club, and Rafael Benitez gave his assessment of the performance from the Algeria international after the game.
Speaking to reporters, the Spaniard said:
“Islam worked hard. The understanding between him and the rest of the team will take some time.” In terms of effort, I was happy with him.”
“I say it again, we had chances. The final pass and in the final third … we didn’t take our chances. That is the difference when you have Walcott or Wayne Rooney on these wages, they can make the difference.”
“We battled and we fought until the end. We had the chance to draw, maybe even win but we lost against a good team.”
Newcastle have the option to sign Slimani on a permanent deal this summer but his opportunities have been restricted to to injury issues, with last night’s appearance being just his third in the Premier League for the Magpies.
