The Toon Tribune: Why Yedlin will be missed at right-back

Newcastle United defender DeAndre Yedlin is back in training having sustained a knee injury in the opening day defeat against Spurs.

However, manager Rafa Benitez has confirmed that the full-back will not feature in United’s next match away to Cardiff City, citing “It is too soon for Yedlin. He will stay here, he will be working and he will need time to get back to his level”.

Although his defending for Tottenham’s winning goal was questionable, Yedlin has become a fixture in the United XI since his arrival in the Summer of 2016. He has formed a strong partnership with winger Matt Ritchie, with the American’s pace offering the Magpies another dimension to the attack when the defender ventures forward from full-back.

Speaking on the partnership on the right flank, Yedlin stated: It’s been great… Matt is a great guy to play with because he is so vocal, not just with me but with the whole team, if the crowd weren’t so loud and you were the only one in the stadium, he would definitely be the one you’d hear yelling all the time”.

He then adds “Any time you can build a bond with certain players, you’re always going to better… You get to know the tendencies of the players in certain situations and you can better assess the situation when you’re in one”.

With Yedlin set to miss the next couple of matches, his likely replacement will be Javier Manquillo. The Spaniard has been much of a fringe player since his arrival at St James’ Park last summer, however he did feature 21 times for the club last season; also deputising when Yedlin was injured.

Although Manquillo helped keep only four clean sheets to Yedlin’s seven, the former Liverpool man had a better tackle success; 61% to Yedlin’s 58%, indicating that the Spaniard is not afraid to put his body on the line.

Manquillo looks set to feature for the Magpies in the next few matches, while his previous season at the club will no doubt help him settle in to the team.

 

Written by Dawud Arshad

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