Steve Bruce points finger at Martin Dubravka for 'flap'

Steve Bruce pointed the finger at Martin Dubravka after Wolverhampton Wanderers came from behind at St James’s Park.
Steve Bruce.Steve Bruce.
Steve Bruce.

The goalkeeper – who this week signed a new contract at Newcastle United – “flapped” at a cross from Matt Doherty, and Jonny netted from his attempted clearance.

Jonny’s 73rd-minute strike cancelled out a first-half goal from Jamaal Lacelles, and the game ended 1-1.

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Bruce, United’s head coach, said it was a “poor decision” from Dubravka, who commited his long-term future to the club on Thursday.

“He (Dubravka) knows he could have done better,” said Bruce, whose side remain 17th in the Premier League table.

“It’s a poor decision from Martin. If you’re going to come and flap at it, then the one thing you can’t do is just push it in the middle of the goal. That’s a bit of a frustration. Of all their work, it’s a mistake that has got them their goal. It’s unfortunate.”

Newcastle deservedly led through Lascelles’ strike at the break. However, the performance unravelled in the second half, and United had Sean Longstaff sent off for a high challenge on Ruben Neves.

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“I was pleased with the way we played in the first half – the second half was very difficult to say the least,” said Bruce.

“I think we just decided that we’d just defend and try to protect what we had, but we didn’t take care of the ball well enough. In the first half, what pleased me was that we took care of the ball and handled it well.

“When they scored, that seemed to shake us up a little bit.”

Joelinton, Bruce’s No9, didn’t have a shot on target, and Newcastle have scored only six goals from their first 10 games.

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“All forwards thrive off opportunities, and in the second half, we haven’t done enough to try to help them,” said Bruce.

“I’m going to face the same questions with (Miguel) Almiron,” said Bruce. “We’ll have to be patient with him and try to protect him, and there’s no doubt he’s a good player. At the moment, he’s finding it tough, but then again, that’s what the Premier League is. It’s tough and uncompromising.”