Newcastle vs. Nottingham Forrest Match Ratings

The rough start to the season continued for Newcastle. Crashing out of the League Cup is not the end of the world, but it would have been good to secure a win to drum up some momentum heading back to league play.

There were some bright spots in the fact that Newcastle finally scored and there was some promise from young players. However, the defense continues to seem out of sorts without any sort of consistency.

Karl Darlow- 5
He made a couple of good saves and didn’t have a ton of help from a shaky backline. He still completely misplayed the second goal, getting caught in no man’s land. Expect Rob Elliot back in goal against West Ham.

Jamie Sterry- 5
About what you would expect from the young full back. Some miscues and some bright spots. Only played 58 minutes as well before being subbed off for Lazaar.

Grant Hanley- 3
Talk about looking lost and confused. Lost his man for the first goal in the middle of the box. He and Mbemba both got beat for the second goal. It’s no wonder Rafa told him he could leave.

Chancel Mbemba- 4
Definitely a below average day for Mbemba. It was clear that he and Hanley were not communicating well. He also got beat to the header that lead to Forest’s extra time winner.

Jesus Gamez- 4
Failed to close down well on the first Nottingham goal. He might not be match fit but he also does not deserve to be on the pitch.

Daniel Barlaser- 6
Nothing too special from another youngster. Put in a solid performance and a good effort until he was subbed off.

Henri Saivet- 6
Solid outing for another Newcastle player told he could leave. He registered four shots in the match. Only one was on target, but he tested the Forest defense throughout.

Jacob Murphy- 6
Fairly average performance in his first home start. Like Saivet, got himself into good positions, but his finishing was less than stellar.

Rolando Aarons- 8
By far the best player on the pitch for Newcastle. A goal and an assist in the first half made for a memorable performance. Here’s hoping that his injury was not serious.

Mo Diame- 5
He did set up Aarons, but otherwise, Diame had a quiet match. He was playing out wide, as opposed to in the middle like he usually does, but when you take five shots and none of them are on target, it’s hard to say you did well.

Alexsander Mitrovic- 7
Fought hard throughout the match to create chances. Scored early and earned a couple of free kicks for the Magpies. He is my pick to start against West Ham.

Achraff Lazaar- 5
Actually played more minutes than Sterry by virtue of extra time, but didn’t have much impact.

Matt Ritchie- 6
Came tantalizingly close to scoring a winner late on. Otherwise, pretty standard showing from Ritchie.

Isaac Hayden- 6
Not much to say about Hayden. He did well on the ball and looked fit. Likely to start against West Ham.

Joselu- 5
Failed to get a shot on goal. That’s partially on him, partially on his service. Still looks better than Perez or Gayle.