Former Arsenal and England centre-back Martin Keown has blasted Newcastle United’s defence on Match Of The Day, with Steven Taylor bearing the brunt.
Keown, who is arguably one of the Premier League era’s best English defenders, laid into Steven Taylor, following yet another shambolic performance.
The former England under-21 captain horrified Newcastle fans with a series of woeful displays. In just two games with him and Chancel Mbemba at the back, the Magpies have shipped six goals. 
Keown told the Match Of The Day audience:
You have to defend far better than this. This is shocking defending from Steven Taylor. It’s embarrassing. (Shane Long) doesn’t even have to do anything to get away from him. I don’t understand that.
But Keown did not stop there. The former Arsenal defender then went on to criticize Newcastle’s performance as a whole:
Newcastle didn’t have a shot on goal for 60 minutes – but you have to stay in the game long enough to try and win the game.
Look at this for a header, he just needs to clear it, it’s almost like a 50 pence piece head, it comes off him and goes for a corner. I don’t understand that – it is a lack of focus.
(On the second goal) This one, Janmaat…just drop off, stay close to your centre-halves, force it wide. He is in too much of a hurry to get out to Tadic and it goes inside of him, again – he was embarrassed.
(On the third goal) And this one…it is like a committee meeting [the defence aren’t concentrating on the Southampton set play], everybody switches off. Good reaction from Southampton, using initiative – and you don’t put Mane one on one with anybody, not with Wijnaldum – Wanyama punishes them.
The decision not to bolster their defensive options in January may prove to be fatal to Newcastle, who have kept just one clean sheet since early December – which came against a West Brom side who, at the time, had failed to muster a shot on target in three consecutive games.
While the defense is a shambles, Newcastle’s problems don’t stop there. Following the club’s latest defeat, 22-year-old defender Jamaal Lascelles was forced to face the music and deal with the media’s questions.
In fairness, Lascelles’ refreshingly honest views have gone down well with the fans, but the cowardly behaviour of the other players has not.
