OPINION
Christian Atsu may have only played for 23 minutes against Tottenham on Saturday but it is clear to see that he shouldn’t play any part of Newcastle United’s next game against Cardiff City.
The 26-year-old winger replaced Matt Ritchie in the 67th minute of the 2-1 defeat to Spurs and while he was lively and enthusiastic he constantly lost the ball for his side.
Atsu has wonderful pace and is capable of being an attacking threat for the Magpies but after his latest display in the Premier League, it’s clear he is an accident waiting to happen.
The 26-year-old kept playing sloppy passes or not releasing the ball quick enough and this saw Spurs keep finding themselves with the ball and able to go on attack due to Atsu carelessness in possession.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side weren’t firing on all cylinders against the Magpies on Saturday and a side in better form would have fully exploited Atsu’s mistakes by extending their lead.
Yet thankfully for the Magpies Spurs weren’t on their best form and other members of Rafa Benitez’s team worked hard to cover for Atsu’s errors.
Given that the winger, who earns £30,000 a-week at St James Park (Source: Spotrac), was only making a cameo appearance then you dread to think what kinda of negative impact he could have had on a game for the Magpies if he had started.
Benitez’s side have been dealt a rough hand courtesy of the fixture list this season as after playing Cardiff City in their next game, they are due to face Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal who are three sides all aiming to be at the top-end of the Premier League when it’s all said a done.
This means the Magpies have to ensure they get all three points against the Bluebirds, who will likely be battling relegation this campaign, otherwise it might feel like a while before Benitez gets his first points on the board.
Therefore given Atsu’s tendency to be wasteful and give the ball away, the Magpies can’t allow him to play against the Bluebirds as he is just as likely to aid Neil Warnock’s side hunt for a goal as he is his own team.
