OPINION
When it comes to right backs, Rafa Benitez must feel as if he stuck between a rock and a hard place.
First choice option Deandre Yedlin has been fairly atrocious at times this season, while deputy Javier Manquillo hasn’t been much better when called upon.
The much-maligned Spaniard has struggled to make a positive impact on Tyneside since joining from Atletico Madrid in 2017, but with Yedlin looking increasingly erratic on the right side of defence a change is needed, and Manquillo should be given a second chance against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
The £35,000-a-week defender [Spotrac] has often looked out of his depth in the Premier League, but his American counterpart seems to be getting shakier and shakier by the week, and it feels like a matter of time before he makes a mistake that could ultimately cost the Magpies crucial points.
A large part of Yedlin’s problem has come from his lack of positional awareness, with the 25-year-old often looking unsure of what is required of him in a defensive capacity as he struggles to adapt to the rigours of playing as a wing-back.
The flip side of that argument would be that his natural pace gives him more of a cutting edge on the front foot, but even then, Yedlin has struggled to produce in the final third either.
Manquillo may not be blisteringly quick or the world’s greatest reader of the game, but he is an out and out defender, and when facing a side with as much talent in wide areas as Palace, a bit of defensive solidity wouldn’t go amiss.
