Back to ‘belt and braces’ tactics for Steve Bruce and United

NEWCASTLE United are set to revert to a “belt and braces” tactical approach at Leicester as Steve Bruce waits to hear whether he’ll have Allan Saint-Maximin available for the “Super Sunday” clash.

United were set up to try to put their collective boot on the throat of Brighton on Saturday, with Miguel Almiron and Christian Atsu instructed to join Joelinton in pressing from the front for the Magpies. It was an attempt to get on the front foot but did not work at all, with Isaac Hayden’s overheard “It’s not working” comment directed at the way the front three were failing to stem the tide of green shirts.

It created a messy situation that saw three formations tried out against the Seagulls and Bruce admitting afterwards that his experiment would not be repeated.

“What I’ve learned is that we can’t leave ourselves open and try and get after teams because people will play through us,” he said. “That’s what I’ve learned. There’s a certain way the whole group has played and I can understand why.”

Newcastle were supposed to be playing a 4-3-3 at the start of the Brighton contest but the visitors picked them off far too easily. They looked better in the final stages when they returned to the system that they were more familiar with, although the addition of Saint-Maximin had a big part to play in that.

Bruce revealed after the match that the French winger was a concern after being spotted feeling his hamstring and there’s been no definitive update in the 48 hours since the match. Bruce will press for more news and hope that he will be available for the crucial upcoming matches.