Repercussions of going rogue will be felt for weeks

MARK DOUGLAS ON WHAT WE LEARNED FROM NEWCASTLE’S DEFEAT AT HANDS OF SPURS

IF Newcastle United were not aware of how difficult it is going to be in the Premier League before a disastrous afternoon against Spurs, they are now.

Newcastle played with discipline and determination in the first half but lost Paul Dummett and new boy Florian Lejeune to injuries, forcing a reshuffle. Then they shot themselves in the foot when Jonjo Shelvey trod on Dele Alli and Spurs made the 10 men pay with two second-half goals.

It emphasised the importance of further strengthening the team and not making the mistakes which have undermined Newcastle’s efforts in the Premier League in recent years. Here is what Newcastle United Editor Mark Douglas learned from the game.

1. Jonjo Shelvey let down his team-mates – and the impact will be felt for a month

What on earth was Shelvey – United’s most outstanding player in pre-season – thinking?

There was absolutely nothing in the game or the challenge when Dele Alli held on to the ball and United’s captain trod on his foot. Andre Marriner was on the spot and the result was always going to be the red card which followed.

Shelvey had spent the summer talking about how he had matured and performances in the friendlies suggested he could play a major role - but at the first sign of trouble he made a horrendous error of judgement which let his manager and his team-mates down badly.

If Rafa Benitez had more of a free hand in transfers, a bigger budget and more options, Shelvey would be on his way - but the fact is Benitez knows he needs him and the red mist is the reason why a player of his quality has not had more takers. It is a big problem for a manager who has illustrated with Aleksandar Mitrovic he has little time for players who go rogue in games.

Newcastle have no choice but to persist with Shelvey. They lost out here because of him but the bigger impact is over the next three games – all winnable – when Newcastle must play Huddersfield and West Ham without their main creative outlet. In fact, with the League Cup game taken into account, he will not play again until September 10 and the trip to Swansea. There are going to be significant repercussions from his moment of utter madness.

It is a big, big problem of their own making.

2. A very Newcastle United-y return to the top flight

Arsenal fans like to taunt their North London rivals by character-