We need to break our winless streak sooner rather
JAMAAL Lascelles insists every Newcastle United player is desperate to end the Magpies’ winless start to the campaign – so they can start enjoying the rest of their week again.
The Magpies have failed to claim victory in any of their first five games in all competitions, and are currently in the bottom three having only claimed one point from their four Premier League matches so far.
But the United captain disputes the idea that players are not affected by results to the same extent that support- ers are. Rather, because football is the “priority” in their lives, Newcastle players can only fully relish other aspects of their lives if they record a positive result.
Otherwise the United players stew on it and so, having had two weeks to digest another defeat against Manchester City, Lascelles is determined to record Newcastle’s first victory of the season against Arsenal at St James’ Park on Saturday.
“Football, it kind of prioritises our whole lives; we put everything into it, with diet restrictions, preparations, anxiety before games,” Lascelles, who will become a father this week, told nufcTV.
“You put your whole life into football, and when you get just one victory it can make your whole week so much better.
“When you lose on a Saturday, your week can be terrible, and that’s how we all feel about it. That’s how important it is to us.
“That’s why we train as hard as we do; to give ourselves every possible chance of going out there on a Saturday and getting three points.
“At the end of the day, it’s not just about us; it’s about 52,000 Geordies that are paying good money to watch us play, the staff here working late to do their job, too. So, as players, the least we can do really is prepare the right way and work hard in training to put on a performance. It’ll be perfect timing for me if we win this weekend; with a baby coming, obviously three points would be lovely. The way we’ve been playing, we’re not far off it.
“We’re literally a few steps away from winning and we’ve had a tough start to the season, but now it’s about waking up and saying: ‘We need to start winning