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Rafael Benitez worries lack of experience in Newcastle squad could prove fatal
Rafael Benitez is worried a lack of experience in his squad may prove decisive in the relegation battle.
After a euphoric home victory over Manchester United two weeks ago, Newcastle let a two-goal lead slip at Bournemouth, plunging them back into trouble.
“You have to keep going until the game ends but you have to stay calm and make the right decisions,” said Benitez, whose squad are the second-youngest in the division behind Liverpool. “This is what can happen when you play at this level against very good players. Our team is a young team and we need a bit more experience to manage situations like this. The team did well against Man United but we have done well against Everton [a 1-0 loss], Leicester [3-2 loss] and Bournemouth in the first half. We have a situation where we are creating chances but missing a little bit this experience or quality.”
The result will be particularly painful for Jonjo Shelvey. Excellent throughout, the midfielder had a simple chance to put Newcastle three up but shot over before Bournemouth’s Adam Smith scored a minute later. “Everybody is disappointed, especially him,” said Benitez. “It can happen in football. The main thing is to create the chances.
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“So when we saw [Christian] Atsu pass the ball, everybody was thinking, ‘Goal. That’s it’. After it, we conceded the goal and, like I say, you have to manage the situation much better. You are in control then miss a chance, concede a goal and then you are panicking.”
Newcastle, whose two goals were provided by Dwight Gayle, travel to Liverpool next. “What we must do there is play as we did for 70 minutes at Bournemouth,” said Benitez.
Eddie Howe’s side were booed off at half-time before Smith’s goal and a late Dan Gosling strike gave them a point. “I don’t think we’d given the supporters much to cheer about during that first half,” said Howe. “I thought it was a flat performance and the supporters showed what they felt. The last 20 minutes was a prime example of when they were fully behind the team and what a difference it made.”
