Benitez: Toon ‘made a mistake’

RAFAEL BENITEZ said the Newcastle fan who threw a bottle at Crystal Palace defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka “made a mistake”.

Newcastle battled hard and rode their luck for a goalless Premier League draw at Selhurst Park, with their fans aiming bad-tempered chants at owner Mike Ashley – attending his first Newcastle game since May 2017.

Asked if he had had chance to speak to Ashley after the stalemate, Benitez replied: “Not really. If the owner wants to support the team that’s fine.

“But if the owner could be on the pitch and score a couple of goals it would be better!”

Benitez preferred to hail his team’s majority of well-behaved supporters, thanking them again for supporting him personally.

“We had almost 3,000 fans here and one made a mistake – but the rest were fantastic,” said Benitez.

“If we want to be stronger we need the fans behind us. Our fans away have been outstanding, no doubt about that.

“Even if we make mistakes, even if we miss chances, even if I make the wrong calls, they have to support the players because it’s the best way for us to stay in the Premier League. And the fans were excellent again today.”

An eyewitness to the bottle throwing incident said: “WanBissaka was hit with a beer bottle from a Newcastle fan.

“It hit his shoulder and he didn’t react but it was still shocking.” – Agencies