The men in old gold fought back from a goal down to earn a point at Newcastle United thanks to Jonny’s strike, meaning Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have lost just three of their 20 matches so far this season. Doherty headed a late chance wide, but the Irishman remained happy with the much-improved showing after the break.
On late frustrations
“Raul got the byline and I got myself into a decent position, it just slid off my head and I didn’t get enough on it which was obviously disappointing. We’re disappointed with a draw after the second-half performance and them going down to ten men.
“I think second-half we were definitely the better team. When they went down to ten men there was enough time for us to try and win the game, but we didn’t manage to put it in the net.”
On the change in formation
“Obviously, I was playing right centre back and I went to my normal position and Leander dropped in and we pushed Adama further forward. We had a little change of shape and, obviously, we know the shape inside out, so it worked for us.
“We were 1-0 down and not managing to get up the pitch as much as we’d like. Second-half we were a lot better and created a lot more chances, that’s the type of players that we have, we’re able to adapt positionally and in the shape. We know what we’re doing inside out so if we do change it’s not a problem.
“Everybody knows the ability and pace Adama has, so when we get in positions, we expect each other to slide each other in and it seems to be working at the moment.”
On fitness holding up
“We got stronger as the game went on. We had to make sure we recover well and are ready for every game. We’re pretty fit, so European games aren’t causing us an issue.
“Credit goes to the backroom staff for the shape they have us in. They make us recover well and we’re prepared for every game. We played on Thursday and it was a two-hour flight so we’re not going to be using that as an excuse, we’ve just got to be more clinical.”
On being hard to beat
“Like the manager said, we’ve played 20 games this season and only lost three times, so we’re obviously hard to beat, if we can put the ball in the back of the net more, we’ll win a lot of games and we need to do it.
“The more games you play, the more you stay unbeaten fills you with confidence. We’ve got Aston Villa on Wednesday then we go to Arsenal, so the games come thick and fast and we’re prepared.
“We’re improving all the time. Where we are in the league isn’t exactly where we want to be, but that can change quick, and we’re not in a bad position considering the amount of games we’ve played.”
