OPINION
Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has started attacker Ayoze Perez in every Premier League game so far this season and his blind faith in the 24-year-old is costing the team.
The Spaniard has been a mainstay in the starting XI and is clearly a big favourite of Benitez.
However, he is not showing enough in his performances to warrant a key role in the Magpies team and must be binned from the side with immediate effect.
Perez has scored just one goal and picked up one assist in his 10 starts this season, but continues to be one of the first names on the team-sheet.
The attacking midfielder should be contributing a lot more in front of goal given his number 10 position behind the striker and he frequently drifts through a game with minimal impact.
He has started every game so far due to his incredible work-rate, but there is not the end product required to start in the top flight.
Newcastle have looked defensively strong in their return to the Premier League and are just lacking the quality in the final third to really help them maintain their position in the top half.
Benitez should axe Perez from the side and replace with a more reliable goalscorer, with the likes of Dwight Gayle and Aleksandar Mitrovic waiting patiently in reserve.
The North East club host Bournemouth at St James’ Park on Saturday and three points before the international break would give them a big boost.
Bournemouth should be there for the taking given their poor league form this season and it’s unlikely that Perez would make a serious impact.
Benitez finally needs to axe the playmaker from the side for the good of the team and there are plenty of options that deserve a chance ahead of him for the foreseeable future.