Florian Lejeune delivers candid assessment of his performance

Lejeune was in the team beaten 2-1 at a sold-out St James’s Park this afternoon.

It was the third Premier League game the defender had played for the injury-hit club in the space of a week after making his comeback from long-term injury.

In a post on Instagram, Lejeune said: “Wasn’t the expected result, it was difficult, but we tried the best we could. Was difficult for me as well, but I will work harder to come back strong. Thanks again for your incredible support.”

Lejeune will now be assessed ahead of the New Year’s Day game against Leicester City at St James’s Park. Head coach Steve Bruce said: “We’ve asked Flo to play three games in a week simply because of the problems we’ve had. We’ll have to see how Flo is.”