Journalist Jacob Whitehead has torn into Newcastle United’s Elliot Anderson for his poor backpass in their FA Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday.
The Lowdown: A moment to forget for Anderson
The 20-year-old played the ball back to Newcastle’s penalty box as Sheffield Wednesday pounced and went close to scoring. Fortunately for the Scot, the chance was missed with goalkeeper Martin Dubravka able to make himself big and the shot was put wide by Josh Windass.
Anderson has been given the nod by Eddie Howe on eight occasions in the Premier League this season but is yet to score in the league for the Magpies.
The last league fixture in which the Magpies man featured was the 3-0 victory against Leicester City, though he only spent a minute on the pitch.
The Latest: Whitehead slams ‘horrible’ Anderson pass
Whitehead took to Twitter whilst reporting on the FA Cup clash and labelled the moment of madness from the Newcastle man as ‘horrible’.
He stated: “Oh dear. Anderson, who I was just telling @ChrisDHWaugh had started well, gives it away with a horrible backpass. Dubravka out well to narrow the angle, and ball squirms wide. Few team errors already, which weren’t made against Arsenal.”
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The Verdict: Anderson looked rusty
Newcastle fielded a number of their fringe players, including the young prospect Anderson, who looked rusty. However, the midfielder still has exciting potential and a long career ahead of him.
He’s shown a lot of promise at youth level, providing 19 goal contributions in 32 appearances for the club’s Under-21s.
Rusty displays and lacklustre performances are something that can happen to any player at the highest level. Hopefully, Anderson can learn from this and develop his game and there’s no doubt the Magpies faithful would love to see one of their own rise through the ranks.