OPINION
If you were to list the negatives from Newcastle United’s performance against Chelsea on Sunday, the display of one particular player in the midfield may spring to mind.
It is safe to say that Newcastle were completely outplayed in the midfield, and the one player that is largely at fault is new signing Ki Sung-Yueng.
The 29-year-old enforcer was woeful in the middle of the park, and lacked any sort of ability to keep hold of the ball, much to the dismay of United fans.
When playing a top Premier League team like Chelsea – who are infamous for the array of talent that they have in their midfield, for example new name Jorginho – you have to be on the top of your game consistently throughout the game.
This was not the case with the South Korea international, who gave the ball away too many times while failing to keep possession.
Based on his display, boss Rafael Benitez must wield the axe on the lazy midfielder, who does not seem to have any sense of position in his role in front of the defence.
He looked like he had no idea when to press on the opposition, let alone tackle them – and this does not bode well for him in terms of his first team chances for the rest of the season.
Ki should not even have a case for a starting spot if this atrocious display was anything to go by, as Benitez cannot risk having such a liability on the pitch when there are points to be won.
The likelihood of winning away at Manchester City this weekend are fairly slim, but their chances would be diminished even more with Ki Sung-Yueng, as City’s line-up would just make a meal of him.
Time for Benitez to swing the axe once again on a player not capable of doing the job.
