Newcastle United lost 4-0 to Leicester City at the King Power Stadium in a sorry display this afternoon, a crushing defeat which will do no good for morale in the fight for Premier League safety.
After conceding the penalty which allowed the Foxes to take the lead, Jamaal Lascelles received heavy criticism from plenty of Magpies supporters on Twitter, some of whom branded him a “liability” who is “not up to standard”.
Should Newcastle sign Tarkowski?
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These members of the Toon Army didn’t hold back, taking to Twitter to chastise the club’s captain following an afternoon to forget:
What these Newcastle fans said
“Pen number 3 given away by Lascelles this season. Fernandez is a must!!!” @Jasonwearmouth
“Time to get Lascelles out for Fede. Continues to prove how much of a liability he is.” @Ben98whiteley
“Lascelles man, for God sake!” @MaxwellA98
“If he wasn’t club captain he wouldn’t start! Just not up to standard. Never has been, never will be!” @MrDLeak
“Captain clumsy gives away another penalty. 3 this season, why is Fernandez not in the starting line-up instead” @joe68mac
“Lascelles still getting a game is more of a shock.” @dannysomers1988
After seeing the reaction to the pre-match team announcement and this performance, the calls for Federico Fernandez to come into the side are likely to grow.
Aside from giving away the penalty which proved the springboard to a comfortable Leicester victory, Lascelles lost three of his five duels, failed to win a tackle or make an interception and lost possession of the ball nine times against the Foxes (SofaScore).
After missing the chance to draw level on points with safety (or climb out of the bottom three, if goal difference was large enough) things aren’t looking good for Newcastle. Burnley gained a point at home to West Ham United, putting themselves a point above Newcastle with a game in hand. When you drop points and the teams around you gain them, it’s increasingly hard to take.
In other news: Many Newcastle United fans were shocked at this transfer update