JOHNGIBSON Need for Slimani just so Crystal clear after draw
IT WAS always Crystal clear a visit to the Palace was never going to be an automatic awards ceremony.
Indeed, United had to survive a second-half mauling to head back north with an invaluable point.
This is going to be a slow crawl towards safety for the rest of the season through a congested field of worriers and not a sprint to high ground.
What every Geordie fan must hope is new signing Islam Slimani provides the much-needed firepower to turn draws into victories and ease jangling nerves.
Newcastle had led comfortably first half through a dagger thrust from player of the moment Mo Diame following a Kennedy corner.
However, once Ciaran Clark rashly took a handful of Christian Benteke’s shirt in blind panic as the big target man went for a Wilfried Zaha cross on 54 minutes to concede a penalty it was time to hang in and pray.
Luka Milivojevic just beat Karl Darlow’s fingertips to level at 1-1 and there was only one possible winner after that.
To a certain extent Clark redeemed himself with a double goalline clearance two minutes from time to help out Darlow and at least save a point.
The bottom line is United simply don’t get themselves a big enough cushion to repel any fightback from the opposition. Only goals bring that and these days Dwight Gayle, so prolific a division down last season, looks a pale shadow.
He is playing from memory rather than conviction.
That is why Rafa Benitez was so desperate to add a striker to his thin squad and why we must hang our hats on Slimani.
United’s top marksmen, Joselu and Ayoze Perez, have only four goals apiece and two of the latter’s quartet came in the cup, so the PL goals-for list is miserly.
Oh how the times of Alan Shearer and Les Ferdinand, SuperMac and Wor Jackie, Andy Cole and Pop Robson seem a long, long time ago.
United have sunk from sixth top when Palace were beaten on home soil to fifth bottom over three and a bit months in a collapse Benitez must somehow halt and then reverse.
As Graeme Souness and Jamie Redknapp harshly but correctly called on TV, all speculation and desire is now over on the closure of the transfer window.
It is now down to the pedigree of Benitez as a top, top coach to outmanoeuvre those around him in the table and pilot his current troops to safety.
He is the greatest hope we have - along with Slimani.
That hope is going to be needed with Manchester United next up quickly followed by daunting matches at Liverpool and Spurs.
Kenedy looks as though he has the invention and the vision to contribute significantly to the cause over the closing matches and while Darlow is an acrobatic shotstopper he can also be a chancer and we must hope Martin Dubravka can add calm assurance.
Darlow is not the greatest communicator - he got in a real mess second half when he did not give Jamaal Lascelles a shout - and that can provide heart-stopping moments.
Too late to send for the cavalry now. Only organisation, determination and application can affect United’s immediate future.
Oh, and a few goals!