OPINION
Newcastle United fans would have no doubt been bitterly disappointed by what they saw when their side visited Arsenal on Monday night.
Forget the result, the Gunners’ 2-0 win coming as a shock to very few out there, it was the manner of the performance which would have concerned the Toon Army the most, with plenty of their star men under-performing to leave the Magpies’ dreadful record against the north Londoners intact.
One man who would have come under intense criticism from the travelling supporters would have been captain Jamaal Lascelles, who was awfully positioned for Arsenal’s second goal and generally off the pace for the entire 90 minutes.
However, speaking after the game, manager Rafael Benitez refused to single out anyone for their performance, telling the Chronicle: “We win together and we lose together, we made a mistake as a team.”
You can imagine there are a number of Lascelles’ teammates scratching their heads after this particular comment, with the defender pretty much solely at fault for allowing Alexandre Lacazette to chip the ball into the back of the net.
He was lucky to escape criticism from his manager – you know some bosses out there would have singled him out either to alleviate the pressure from the whole team or use it as motivation to improve – but surely the axe is still looming large over his head.
Fabian Schar will be back from suspension for their next game against Crystal Palace while Federico Fernandez will have been watching on from the bench wondering why he was axed in favour of Lascelles.
Only Benitez knows whether the sharp blade will drop on his captain against the Eagles – but the powerhouse must know how fortunate he was to be backed by his boss for a dreadful display.
