The Magpies collapsed in the second half against Manchester City at the Etihad.
Newcastle United assistant head coach Paul Simpson has criticised his team’s collapse in the second half of their last Premier League outing against Manchester City.
The Magpies took the lead and looked well in the game for the majority of the first half, before Sergio Aguero levelled things up just before half time.
What followed after the restart was a complete capitulation which saw the Argentine go on to net another four goals in a 13 minute spell.
The match ended 6-1 and the Magpies entered the international break with that disappointment hanging over them.
Sunday’s clash with Norwich is a chance to make amends and Simpson is determined the team learns from their City disaster.
“What we have to do now is realise the collapse that we had against Manchester City is not acceptable,” he said, in quotes published by the Chronicle.
“That’s not Premier League standard. That’s not what we want of these players.
“And we had unbelievable support that made that journey down and they all went in at half-time probably in a positive frame of mind and we ripped the guts out of ourselves the way we were second-half.
“We’ve got to nip that in the bud. We’ve got to deal with that. We’ve got to make sure that we stay strong and we stay positive,” he added.
Despite the final result, there are clear positives to take from Newcastle’s showing in the first 45 minutes and should they replicate that level of performance at St James Park this weekend, they have every chance of picking up a first win of the season.
Norwich have made a solid start on their return to the top flight however, and will provide tough opposition to a Magpies team in desperate need of a change in fortune.
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