Newcastle will go down if the supporters do not back their team, says Saint-maximin
Allan Saint-maximin identified Newcastle supporters as the key to the club’s hopes of Premier League survival as he warned losing their backing could result in relegation.
The Frenchman will himself have a major say in whether the planet’s wealthiest club will be in the Championship again next season, but he believes some significant others will also be crucial in helping the Premier League’s only winless side recover from their perilous position.
Saint-maximin’s terrorising of defenders is likely to be more pivotal than most aspects of the survival scrap in helping the division’s bottom club bridge the ever-growing gap to safety, but the winger believes that, ultimately, salvation sits in the stands.
“The fans are the most important thing for me,” the 24-year-old said after his late equaliser rounded-off a six-goal thriller at St James’ Park. “If the fans at this moment don’t give the support to the team, we will go down for sure.”
As unstinting and loyal as that backing may be, supporters are not the ones on the pitch, who include a kittens-inducing defence and a midfield overrun with alarming ease by Brentford. They are not Joelinton, scorer of his side’s first equaliser, who with the goal at his mercy to win it late on, fell over. They are not
Karl Darlow, escorting a routine shot from Ivan Toney into the net.
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe is set to miss the next game against Arsenal on Saturday as well, as he continues to isolate in his hotel suite after testing positive for Covid-19.
Following some provocative badge-kissing when cancelling out an early Jamaal Lascelles header, former Newcastle forward Toney was more conciliatory after helping Brentford stem a four-match losing run to maintain a seven-point gap ahead of Howe’s side.
Brentford’s other goals were provided by Rico Henry with an unopposed header and Lascelles deflecting substitute Frank Onyeka’s shot beyond Darlow.
Toney, shown the door at St James’ Park three years ago, said: “The goal meant a lot, but I didn’t feel like I had a point to prove here in particular.”