It’s fair to say that, perhaps with the exception of Bruno Guimaraes and Malick Thiaw, our entire XI should be thinking long and hard about the quality of their performance against Sunderland this past Sunday.
We were second best for the entire game, and even our most dependable players like Sandro Tonali and Tino Livramento had an afternoon to forget at the Stadium of Light.
But the wingers in particular produced perhaps their poorest performance to date, as the duo of Anthony Elanga and Anthony Gordon simply could not get going at all in one of our biggest games of the season so far.
Elanga’s performance in particular has attracted significant criticism, and has lead to an increased number of questions from both fans and former players alike over just how what it will take for him to rediscover even half of his Nottingham Forest form in the North East.
Shearer baffled by Elanga move
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Alan Shearer questioned why Elanga was given the nod at right wing for the derby, ahead of a player like the experienced Jacob Murphy or more in-form Harvey Barnes.
Elanga has struggled for goals and confidence since his £55m move from Nottingham Forest, and Shearer brother it was a mistake that backfired to throw him in on such on such a big occasion.
“That was another big surprise to me (that Howe picked Elanga).
”I think (it was) another one that Eddie got wrong today, because Elanga has been poor at Newcastle.
“He’s carrying a heavy price tag through no fault of his own, hasn’t played well, one or two on his back.
“I thought for Eddie to put him in the biggest pressurised situation in the derby game away, ahead of Murphy, I thought that backfired as well.”
Early signs a huge concern
Since arriving from the City Ground, Elanga has yet to show any sign of player that finished third in for assists in the Premier League last season.
Against Reinildo on Sunday, Elanga completed 0 take ons, didn’t have a single shot, and won none of his duels before being substituted around the hour mark.
With just a single assist to his name in the league this season, no goals, and a poor Champions League return aside from the game against Union Saint-Gilloise, time is rapidly running out for the winger to show he deserves to be a starter moving forward.
Elanga seems unlikely to start tomorrow against Fulham in the Carabao Cup, and it would be a surprise if Howe gives him the nod against Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella in our next league games on Saturday.
The parallels to Anthony Gordon’s own first season are clear to see, and it wasn’t until the first full season after signing that we got to see Gordon play his best football for us: here’s hoping that Elanga is on a similar high trajectory, but obviously one that comes much, much sooner.