Newcastle United handed 'levels' warning over 'great opportunity' for Sunderland

Newcastle United have been handed a major warning as the minutes tick down to Sunday’s Wear-Tyne derby against Sunderland.

The Magpies have made the short trip to Wearside on the back on a difficult away day at Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen in midweek as a late equaliser prevented Eddie Howe’s side from putting one foot in the knockout stages of the Champions League.

Conceding late goals has become something of a regular feature during the opening four months of the season with the Magpies conceding more goals in the final 20 minutes and more goals in second-half injury-time than any other Premier League clubs. That also means United have dropped more points from winning positions than their rivals across the top flight. Bizarrely, the Magpies have the best defensive record in the openign half-hour of Premier League fixtures during the campaign - and Micah Richards believes that has shown Howe’s side are prone to lapses in concentration that could see them punished against a Sunderland side looking to preserve their unbeaten record at the Stadium of Light.

The former Manchester City defender told Sky Sports: “I would say it’s more down to concentration, the points dropped. Sometimes when you’re playing the game, you think the game is already over. I did this a lot in my career when I would just not mark the runner or I would let me levels drop a little bit and you can’t afford to at this level because you’ll get punished.“I would say it’s down to concentration in the first 30 minutes because they’re hyped up, especially using their stadium. The fans don’t allow them to not tackle or work hard, it’s at the end of the game, it’s just that concentration.”

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher added: “That is really important today. I’ve said before this is a great opportunity for Sunderland. Newcastle have played away, in the Champions League, and then to come here, to their ground, they’ve got to start quick. That is important for Newcastle that they don’t concede early.”

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