da pixbet： Journalist Jacque Talbot has defended Newcastle United man Dan Burn amid "strange" criticism of the left-back.
What's the latest on Newcastle and Dan Burn?
da pinnacle： It's been a fine campaign so far for the Magpies as they've exceeded all expectations to find themselves fourth in the Premier League with just eight games left to play.
However, on Saturday afternoon, they suffered one of their worst displays of the season as they were thumped 3-0 away from home against Aston Villa.
In light of the defeat, it seems a few question marks have been asked of left-back Burn and his recent form in a Newcastle shirt.
Indeed, when speaking about the £35k-p/w star on his own YouTube channel, Talbot claimed the defender has unfairly become a "scapegoat".
He said (1:39): “I find it strange. Like, I don't quite understand the, I wouldn't call it abuse and stuff…
"Like: ‘Oh, Dan Burn needs he needs to be sold, he needs to go. This is, why you know, we're not going to make Champions League.’
"And I feel like the players deserve a little bit more from the fans. For what they've given us this season.
"Just to be like: 'Yeah, he should go like, get rid of Dan Burn' – who's a particular scapegoat.
"Dan Burn is 25 per cent of the Premier League's best defence this season, by some margin.”
Is Dan Burn a weak link at Newcastle?
Seeing as Newcastle have the best defence in the league, having conceded 24 goals all season – Manchester City on 28 is the next best – it seems unfair to criticise the backline.
What's more, Burn has played in all 30 league games for the Magpies so far, starting 29, so he's been an integral part of that defensive success. And when you look on WhoScored, of players to have played over 1000 minutes, Burn is actually the club's seventh player with a rating of 6.78.
Still, it may be fair to criticise Burn after his most recent outing. For instance, in the player ratings for ChronicleLive, Lee Ryder handed Burn a 5/10 for his efforts and wrote: "Endured a tough physical battle with [John] McGinn. Battled hard but wasn't his day. In fairness, Matt Targett also failed to cope with McGinn's bustling runs."
While 90min was a bit more brutal with a 3/10 score, with journalist Jude Summerfield, claiming the left-back was "dragged all over the place."
Despite that, though, for the most part, Burn has been a pretty consistent performer in an incredibly solid backline. With that in mind, he probably deserves a bit of patience from his own fans as he looks to rediscover his best form.