Players not distracted, says Atsu

A POTENTIAL takeover of Newcastle United is not a distraction for the players, according to winger Christian Astu.

The Ghanaian believes that attention surrounding the club and Mike Ashley is not something the players should be focusing on.

“The takeover is not our problem. Our focus is ourselves. We are here to play every game no matter what else is going on.

“That is our focus. We showed that at Everton. We showed that matters outside the game don’t affect us. We are mentally strong and we are focused on winning games. We know this ourselves, we don’t need anyone telling us, we know we have to play football and let our feet do the talking to get results.”

Atsu, who came into the side for Matt Ritchie, twice fired at goalkeeper Jordan Pickford in the final few moments of the game, but thankfully his missed chances did not come back to haunt United, and they left Merseyside with a draw.

Salomon Rondon opened the scoring before Richarlison netted the equaliser.

The winger believes it was a good point, and has vowed to improve on his game.

“Everton were very good on the ball, created a lot of chances, but we are very happy to get the point.

“I was mentally prepared to play in these games, I am always trying to do something for the team. I had the chances to score, it was unfortunate not to score. I am still very happy I contributed in the performance.

“It is hard when you are on the bench, you have to work extra hard to be fit when you are called on. I had to do something to stay in the team and I feel like I have done what I can.”