Mistakes come once pressure is on United

NEWCASTLE United boss Rafa Benitez admitted his team had no choice but to take risks after falling behind early at home to Watford.

The Magpies lost their fourth game in a row in the Premier League and have slipped closer to the relegation battle.

After losing 3-0 to the Hornets, Benitez said: “Everybody knew they were doing well and we needed to be strong, to be solid, and we made a mistake.

“We started well, but we made a mistake, we conceded the first goal and then you have to go forward.

“The reaction of the team was good. We were pushing, we were pressing and on top of them, but the second goal changed everything.

“In the second half, you have to take more risks and we conceded another goal, and then it was more difficult for us to react and to do the right things because at the end, when you are under pressure, the anxiety makes you make more mistakes.”

And when asked if there was a confidence issue in the camp, Benitez said: “It’s something that we have to realise could happen, that you could lose games because we are in the Premier League and it’s another level.

“Everybody needs to know that if we want to improve, we have to work harder and better, that’s it.”

Benitez was also asked about the performance of DeAndre Yedlin after the US international suffered a torrid time and conceded an own goal.

Benitez said: “We had a couple of runs that were dangerous and they scored the first goal, but at the same time, we were also attacking from that side, so it’s a question of who takes their chances.

“We had some chances, we didn’t take our chances; they had two or three and they scored three.” DeAndre Yedlin