JERMAINE JENAS EXCLUSIVE: Outstanding Wijnaldum needs help to save McClaren's inconsistent Magpies

Newcastle surprised some people with their display against Liverpool, and the 2-0 win against Jurgen Klopp’s side has bought Steve McClaren some time to save his job. But it won’t count for much unless they find some consistency, and the man who gives me most confidence the Mapgies can turn the corner is Georginio Wijnaldum. The Dutch midfielder has been their standout performer, not just against Liverpoool but all season.

When things are good at Newcastle – and I was at the club during some very good times when we were playing in the Champions League – it’s a special place and there is nowhere better to play football. But I also had a taste of when things were bad, and then it becomes a very tough place to play. The pressure that mounts on you from the fans is the equivalent of the huge support you get when things are great, but in reverse.

I remember when I went to QPR when they were fighting relegation, and before I joined a couple of their players warned me that the fans can get on top of you at Loftus Road when things are bad. I remember thinking it couldn’t be anything like Newcastle, and it wasn’t. When I was on Tyneside during tough periods, you could quite easily lose a few players to tight hamstrings and sore backs - the kind of things they could have probably played through in different circumstances.

Playing at home in front of 52,000 unhappy Geordies is not easy, and there’s no hiding place. It’s the easiest excuse for players to not play well, or in some cases not play at all. This is the kind of environment Newcastle’s squad – many of them inexperienced in the Premier League – have found themselves in, but Wijnaldum has stood tall.

He’s an ever-present in the team, and what I love most about the Dutchman is the amount of responsibility he takes in that team. He’s always available for the ball and prepared to receive it in tough areas. He doesn’t just want the ball when he has space, he will take it anytime, anywhere.

The only other player I’ve come across like that in my career is Luka Modric when we played together at Tottenham. I’m not saying Wijnaldum is as good as Modric – not many players are – but they both have something within them. A mentality of, ‘just give me the ball, whenever’.

In Modric’s case, he didn’t care whether he was in space, or in his most comfortable position, or even whether he was being marked touch-tight, he would still want the ball. He knew he was strong enough, skilful enough and quick enough to get out of any situation. And that’s exactly what Wijnaldum is like.

He’s strong as an ox and he has great ability on the ball, plus he can score goals. You expect a player who cost £14.7m to have quality, but you don’t necessarily expect the character he has shown in a struggling team. That’s what can make him the catalyst for their revival.

Unfortunately for Newcastle, their other summer signings have not been nearly as successful.

Every year, they seem to go crazy bringing in players from here, there and everywhere – especially the French league - but they don’t recruit players with Premier League experience.

In the past five years, Jack Colback from Sunderland and Demba Ba from West Ham are about the only exceptions to this rule.

Plundering the European leagues works for them sometimes, like in Wijnaldum’s case, but if you sign too many unproven players it can start to get silly. That’s because you’re asking these players to immediately hit the ground running, and it’s simply not as easy as that.

There are so many other factors to consider. A player’s family might not settle, and the effect on their home life can spill into their professional life. Plus they don’t know the league, so the footballing side is also totally different.

Newcastle should mix and match the type of players they sign. For example, there’s nothing wrong with buying a player like Florian Thauvin as someone who may make a long-term impact. But in that case, I’d prefer them to have signed Charlie Austin rather Aleksandar Mitrovic – another talented but unproven player. Where’s the balance?

I do see some fight and some spirit in this team, and that should give them a decent chance of staying up. But I won’t be getting carried away with my former club’s victory against the Reds, because they have done this to me already this season – by following up promising displays one week with horror shows the next.

It’s woeful displays like the one at Crystal Palace last weekend that put Steve McClaren under the spotlight and bring the management into question.

Tottenham away is their next game and it’s hard one, but there is no reason Newcastle can’t go there and give a good account of themselves. Even if they don’t win the game, that’s what McClaren needs.

It’s always a case of good news, bad news with McClaren’s team and that’s why I still fear for his future. They were brilliant against Liverpool, but can he rely on them to deliver another strong performance against Spurs? I’m not sure he can, but he can at least count on Wijnaldum to lead the fight.