Newcastle United lost 2-0 out in Japan as they continued their preparations for the new Premier League season against Yokohama F-Marino’s in front of 50,000 fans.
In a game, which was played in boiling 35°C heat in Japan’s national stadium in Shinjuku City, United went behind in the 34th minute through Marino’s’ Brazilian forward Elber before Amano added another in the 54thminute for the former J-League Champions. Here are my five key takeaways from the game:
Lloyd Kelly at CB
Lloyd Kelly, the free transfer from Bournemouth, made his debut as the lads wore the new Adidas third kit for the first time. Kelly is a versatile footballer and showed it this afternoon with 45 minutes at left-sided centre-back, despite playing a large proportion of his career at LB.
Despite being in a backline that conceded a goal, and getting booked, Kelly looked decent, with forward passes into midfield, one vital block, a couple of dribbles with the ball, and winning it back in more advanced positions. However, …
Come in Marc Guehi
The team were generally poor at the back, especially in a sloppy and disjointed second half performance. News broke on Friday that the club have opened talks with Crystal Palace for the transfer of Marc Guehi – the one consistent positive about England’s performances this summer.
The 24-year-old showed his composure during the Euros, showing calmness, strength and recovering excellently whenever he made a mistake, which wasn’t often. Composure was certainly lacking in the Newcastle defence in Tokyo with an admittedly rotated, second choice backline making mistakes, conceding chances and putting in rash tackles.
If a £60million-deal is agreed and Guehi comes in, he should be the long-term replacement for Fabian Schar, and his calmness and pace will certainly improve United’s defence.
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The 17-year-old England youth international looked sharp in the first game of the tour against Urawa…
Source link : https://www.nufcblog.co.uk/2024/08/04/five-takeaways-from-yokohoma-2-0-newcastle-kelly-sanusi-and-no-need-to-overreact/
Author : Jonathan Young
Publish date : 2024-08-04 07:04:03
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