OPINION
Newcastle United put in a lacklustre performance in a 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, and there were plenty of talking points to take away from the clash.
The Magpies were second best all day and were lucky to not concede late on as Palace squandered two golden chances to take the lead through Mamadou Sakho and Wilfried Zaha.
This is Futbol have rounded up three things we learned about Newcastle v Crystal Palace below:
Perez useless again
It is easy to see why Rafa Benitez continues to select Ayoze Perez in his starting lineups for Newcastle, with the Spaniard always working hard for the team. He is also a player who can follow instructions to the book, and is versatile enough to fill in several positions. However, his poor performances in recent weeks have brought his starting place into question, and Saturday was no different. Perez failed to make an impact at all on the game, squandering some good chances while offering little else. It may well be time for Benitez to turn to somebody else, because Perez has showed little to suggest he should start in their next outing.
Shelvey fitness is paramount
Jonjo Shelvey returned to the Newcastle starting XI for the first time in several weeks against the Eagles, and the pass master made an immediate impact. You could instantly see that his presence in midfield gave Newcastle a lift, and they look a different outfit with him on the park. His passing range is unrivalled and they have looked lost without that in recent weeks. The one player who benefits most from having Shelvey in the side is midfield partner Mo Diame, who looks so much more comfortable with him alongside. Keeping the £70,000-a-week midfielder [Spotrac] fit in the coming months is going to be key for Newcastle if they want to survive this season.
Rondon improvement needed
Many Newcastle fans were ecstatic when they saw that Salomon Rondon was to start after missing out last weekend, but the Venezuela international lasted just 45 minutes before being hauled off by Benitez. Whether that was down to injury is not clear yet, but one thing that is clear is that Rondon must improve soon for the Magpies. He hardly touched the ball in the first half at all, and as a lone striker that is not a good sign. Holding the ball up is one of his strengths, but there was no sign of that on Saturday. Hopefully he is not injured but improvements definitely must be made in the coming weeks if he wants to retain his starting spot.