Rafa Benitez reveals why Kenedy took THAT penalty for Newcastle '“ and reacts to his kick

Benitez's side drew 0-0 with Cardiff City on an eventful afternoon in South Wales.

Newcastle were awarded a penalty in injury time after Sean Morrison handled in the box.

The winger's spot kick, described as "poor" by Benitez, was stopped by Cardiff goalkeeper Neil Etheridge.

Kenedy – who kicked out at Victor Camarasa in the first half and could be punished retrospectively – was United's designated penalty-taker with Matt Ritchie, on a yellow card, having been taken off earlier in the game

"Kenedy was the designated penalty taker," said manager Benitez. "First it was Matt Ritchie, but then it was Kenedy.

"It was a poor penalty. He’s not happy he missed a good chance. We win as a team and lose as a team. I'm not concerned about the fact he missed a penalty – he has to take responsibility."

Referee Craig Pawson seemingly missed Kenedy's kick at Camarasa, which came after he was tackled by another Cardiff player.

Asked about the incident, Benitez said: "There were too many decisions I didn't like during the game. Some went in our favour, some went against us.

"There was a tackle to Joselu, another to (Javier) Manquillo, we could talk about them."

On the game itself, Benitez added: "It was a strange game. We knew it would be physical and difficult, and it was. We put ourselves under pressure with some mistakes.

"After there were many things I did not like too much. The positive was we got a point, but the three points were there for us, so I'm disappointed."

Meanwhile, Cardiff manager Neil Warnock labelled Kenedy's miss as "poetic justice".