OPINION
Rafa Benitez must hand Newcastle United midfielder Jonjo Shelvey a starting place in his team sooner rather than later based on Charlie Nicholas’ remarks.
The Sky Sports pundit not only shared that the 27-year-old being brought off from the bench lifted the Magpies’ crowd against Crystal Palace, but shared he noticed that the side’s attackers were struggling as they didn’t seem to be confident the midfielders would support their charge forward.
“Shelvey came on to big applause, they were really happy to see him, back in the team,” said Nicholas on Soccer Saturday (Sky Sports News, Saturday April 6th, 17:38).
“But didn’t get too much time.
“I’m really not sure about Newcastle, they bring in Almiron, they’ve got a front three, they’ve got a bit of pace, bit of movement and it’s as if they’re not convinced about the midfield releasing themselves to go and support them, and because of that they get caught with gaps in between.”
Shelvey is the type of player who was always looking to force the issue going forward, whether that means him strolling forward with the ball at his feet or launching an inch-perfect pass for one of the club’s forwards to latch on to.
After two disappointing performances in a row for the Magpies, the loss to Arsenal and Palace, then clearly something needs to change.
When you consider that Shelvey is someone the fans want to see in action more based on his reception, and that Nicholas noticed the Magpies’ midfield was causing them to struggle, surely it’s a no-brainer decision for Benitez to make.
The 27-year-old fell down the pecking order as his teammates stepped up in his absence when he was stuck on the sidelines, but his quality has never been in question.
The Magpies face a tricky away game against Leicester City next Friday and if Benitez wants to give his side the best chance of winning, surely that means he has to put his faith back in Shelvey and start him.
