OPINION
Newcastle United made it back-to-back victories on Saturday as they battled to a fully deserved 2-1 victory over Bournemouth at St James’ Park.
One of the stars of that performance, perhaps surprisingly, was wing back DeAndre Yedlin who excelled in an all-action display on the Magpies’ right flank.
Indeed, he even did enough to catch the eye of former England international Paul Robinson. The Sky Sports pundit was very impressed by what the United States of America international did against the Cherries.
“He came from nowhere but he has a great engine down that right-hand side,” he told Football Insider. “He gives Newcastle another attacking option when he is allowed to be one, when his reins are off.”
Robinson is absolutely bang on in his assessment of Yedlin’s performance. The 26-year-old made the right hand side his own on Saturday, proving that he can now combine his tremendous attacking capabilities with a much improved defensive awareness.
The statistics from the game demonstrate just how impactful the American was against Eddie Howe’s side. As per WhoScored.com, the former Tottenham Hotspur man had one shot – which was the goal he scored – as well as producing three crosses and four long balls forward, three of which found their intended target.
Defensively, he was excellent. Yedlin made three tackles, one interception and three clearances, on his way to a fantastic WhoScored rating of 7.38.
This is a guy who lost his place in the Magpies team to Javier Manquillo down the stretch last season. Now, though, he has made the right wing back position his own with a phenomenal return from injury.
The defence is really carrying Newcastle at the moment – at both ends of the pitch – and, after missing the first portion of the campaign, Yedlin is now a big part of that.
