Newsletter

Get your daily update and weekly newsletter by signing up today!

News

Garth Crooks selects Newcastle star in team of the week – ‘A player with brains as well as heart’

7 years ago
Share

After Newcastle picked up their first win of the season, Garth Crooks has picked out one United star for special mention.

The BBC pundit saying ‘Benitez invested wisely in Ritchie – a player with brains as well as heart’.

Garth Crooks believes that Matt Ritchie is showing he can cope with the step back up to the Premier League.

The former player contrasting the winger with both Shelvey and Mitrovic, who according to him ‘cannot be trusted’ because of their disciplinary problems.

The Garth Crooks best 11 players of this week and his write-up on Matt Ritchie below.

Garth Crooks team of the week:

Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester)

Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)

Joel Matip (Liverpool)

Benjamin Mendy (Man City)

Matt Ritchie (Newcastle United)

Kevin de Bruyne (Man City)

Cesc Fabregas (Chelsea)

Raheem Sterling (Man City)

Sadio Mane (Liverpool)

Tammy Abraham (Swansea)

Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)

Garth Crooks on Matt Ritchie:

“It was only on the third attempt that Newcastle’s Matt Ritchie eventually managed to rob Manuel Lanzini of the ball and produce the cross of the match for Ciaran Clark to convert and dump West Ham well and truly at the bottom of the table.

“It couldn’t have gone much worse for the Hammers at St James Park. Until this point the East Londoners were still in the match.

Slaven Bilic had gone to some lengths last week talking his team up after their performances against Southampton and Cheltenham in midweek.

“However, none of that will mean a row of beans after this performance. Nor will it alleviate the pressure he now finds himself under going into the international break.

“The Newcastle fans, on the other hand, were chanting Rafa Benitez’s name throughout, which speaks volumes about the way they feel about their manager.

“Nevertheless, Benitez needs to add more quality to this team particularly as Jonjo Shelvey and Aleksandar Mitrovic cannot be trusted not to leave some of themselves on one of their opponents.

“Fortunately, Benitez invested wisely in Ritchie – a player with brains as well as heart. The Scotland international is starting to catch the eye and prove he can cope with the pressures and demands of the Premier League.”

Share

If you would like to feature on The Mag, submit your article to contribute@themag.co.uk

Have your say

© 2024 The Mag. All Rights Reserved. Design & Build by Mediaworks