OPINION
Newcastle United slumped to their second consecutive defeat to Crystal Palace on Saturday, and Rafa Benitez only has his players to blame for such a disappointing display.
Isaac Hayden was one of the only players who put in a decent shift that afternoon as they fell to a one goal deficit, with the rest of his teammates looking rather lacklustre and out-of-sorts.
One of those players was definitely Ki sung-yueng. The South Korean is usually assured in the middle of the park, passing the ball around with confidence and ease. His ability going forward was also effective, but it was not on Saturday – it was far from it.
Seeing as Sean Longstaff is out for the season, Benitez does not have many more choices to call upon. Jonjo Shelvey has not had much game time, but there is Mo Diame, who did not feature in the defeat.
Benitez has confirmed – via Chronicle reporter Lee Ryder on his personal Twitter account – that the 31-year-old is fit once again and will be available for selection, something which the fans will surely be over the moon about after Ki’s woeful display.
Mo Diame has been declared fit for the game with Leicester #nufc – only Lejeune and Longstaff ruled out.
— Lee Ryder (@lee_ryder) April 11, 2019
The Magpies need another option in the midfield, and Diame is definitely that player. He may have been slated previously, but the team need him more than ever – especially with safety falling further and further out of their reach.
If there ever was a time to prove to the manager that Diame should be his first choice, this could potentially be it. He would be mad to start Ki once again, so the responsibility should lie with Diame to deal with the Foxes on Friday.
Benitez would be very wise to unleash Diame, as he would sit in front of the defence providing cover, something which they would need after the injury to Florian Lejeune.
