Newcastle's Sean Longstaff looks dejected
Martin Dubravka, Sean Longstaff and Jamaal Lascelles all struggled as Newcastle United suffered a humbling 5-0 defeat against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.
The Magpies were off the pace throughout the match at the Etihad Stadium as the Premier League frontrunners quickly put their midweek Champions League heartache to one side.
Goals from Raheem Sterling and Aymeric Laporte gave the hosts a first-half advantage before Rodri, Phil Foden and another late Sterling strike put some gloss on the day for the Cityzens. For Eddie Howe’s men, this result served as a reality check following a run of impressive form.
We’ve taken a look into the statistics from Sofascore to crunch the numbers and determine which Newcastle players were the least able to cope in Manchester.
Jamaal Lascelles (6.1)
Matt Targett also posted a 6.1 rating and played for the full 90 minutes, although his statistics on the whole seemed slightly superior to those of Lascelles.
Recalled to Howe’s side for perhaps their toughest test of the season, the club captain had 44 touches at the heart of an overworked Magpies defence and lost four of his six duels on a tough afternoon for the 28-year-old.
Where will Newcastle finish in the Premier League?
Top 6
7th - 10th
11th -17th
Relegated
Overall, Lascelles also lost possession five times, misplaced four passes and missed a big chance early on to get Newcastle back in the match, whereas Targett at least created one big chance.
Sean Longstaff (6.0)
Barely involved in proceedings, as illustrated by taking just 27 touches despite lasting the entire 90 minutes, the Geordie midfielder was unable to make an impact on the contest at any stage.
The 24-year-old wasn’t particularly careful with the ball, either, as he lost possession five times, misplacing four out of his 22 attempted passes whilst also losing three of his four duels.
Martin Dubravka (5.9)
It was not the Slovakian goalkeeper’s finest afternoon for the club as the 33-year-old made one crucial error which lead to a goal whilst misplacing half of his 40 passes on a day when keeping possession was paramount against a team who routinely dominate the ball.
Dubravka was the busiest of the three chosen Newcastle players with 51 touches, but he also failed to pick out a team-mate with 20 of his 32 attempted long passes on a day to forget for the usually reliable stopper.
In other news, NUFC are now eyeing a move for this former Sunderland ace
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