The Newcastle United man continues to impress for the Magpies.
Newcastle United players will wake up on Sunday morning safe in the knowledge that they are top of the Championship.
Rafael Benitez’s boys thumped Ipswich Town 3-0 on Saturday afternoon as the Magpies sit three points clear of Brighton and Huddersfield Town in second and third spot respectively.
Two goals from Ayoze Perez – the first of which came within a minute of kickoff – helped Newcastle into a 2-0 lead with 15 minutes to go.
And £10 million signing Matt Ritchie completed the victory shortly after as Newcastle continue to justify their pre-season label as favourites to win promotion.
Such a comfortable win is bound to put the spotlight on United’s attacking quantities, but it would be a mistake to dismiss the Magpies’ defenders – and especially Ciaran Clark.
The Republic of Ireland centre-back has emerged as a key player for Benitez after starting Newcastle’s last seven Championship outings – six of which were wins, the other a draw.
And fans of the North-East club felt it was right to highlight his improvement after initially struggling for regular starts following a £5 million switch from Aston Villa.
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