Paul Robinson was blown away by Newcastle United defender Federico Fernandez after his display in the 2-2 draw against Manchester City.
The Sky Sports pundit gushed about the entire Magpies’ defence against the champions but picked out the Argentine for his efforts in the back five.
Robinson selected the 30-year-old as his man of the match at St James’ Park, claiming he made the game easy for Javier Manquillo who deputised for the injured DeAndre Yedlin.
“The Newcastle back-five were all outstanding, especially for me Fernandez,” he told Football Insider.
“I thought he was at the top of his game, he marshalled the defence, looked comfortable on the ball and I think he made it easy for Manquillo as he played alongside him.
“Fernandez got given the nod ahead of him (Fabian Schar) and I think he was Newcastle’s Man of the Match at the weekend.”
The 30-year-old started his fifth-consecutive Premier League fixture on Saturday after failing to feature in the four games before that.
OPINION
One of Newcastle’s biggest strengths at the beginning of this Premier League season has been their defensive options. No matter who Bruce has had available to him because of injuries and suspension, the replacements have stepped up and filled the voids perfectly. Fernandez was one of those players who started the campaign as a replacement option at St James’ Park, with a handful of players above him in the pecking order, but that has well and truly changed in the past couple of months. The South American has stepped up in the absence of Fabian Schar, and he has definitely cemented his spot in the side moving forward after yet another flawless performance against City. The 30-year-old completed five interceptions against the champions – the most he has averaged in a single game this season [WhoScored]. Given their troubles in the final third, it is vital that their defence is at the top of their game to keep the Magpies in fixtures so that they can potentially steal a winner, something they have done superbly in recent games.
