Newcastle United captain Dan Burn has told his team-mates they cannot afford to keep dwelling on the departures of Bruno Guimaraes, Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali, insisting the club must move on without them.
The England international has demanded a response from the Magpies on Monday night following their Carabao Cup defeat to Everton on Thursday. Newcastle get an opportunity for instant revenge at St James' Park with the Toffees next up on Tyneside, and a place in the top six could be up for grabs for Matthias Jaissle's wounded players.
Burn's warning on excuses
With Newcastle still at the rebuilding stage, Burn has warned team-mates that blaming the loss of Bruno and Co won't wash as they look to push for a place in Europe without them. The 6ft 7in defender headed home a consolation against David Moyes' side but now wants three points to help make up for the no-show on Merseyside.
When asked about the departure of the trio he said: "I don't really want to use it as an excuse, it just happens at a football club. You get to the stage where players move on and you go again. It's not like we're replacing a Bruno for Bruno, it just isn't possible, it takes time."
No hiding place for players
Jaissle came in at the start of August and missed most of pre-season before altering Newcastle's tactics ahead of the new campaign. It meant he always had a short turnaround to get his tactics and playing style implemented before the season started, but Burn says there is no reason for Newcastle to be ducking out of challenges and losing duels in the air, regardless of how they set up.
Burn said: "It's not where the manager has had a full pre-season to get across where he wants. A lot of that tonight isn't about tactically, it's just the things like winning the duels and being hard to beat and clinical. Nothing else really matters apart from those bits. So we can't use it as an excuse, to say there's been a lot of transition is an easy way out."
Recovery starts against Everton
The recovery after the cup loss starts at home to Everton on Monday and Burn is eager to get going again. He said: "It's not through a lack of trying. We are talking about it and doing it. It's more about consistency and replicating it day after day. It's good we have them again in three days to put that right. I'd like to think we can reflect on where we've not done well tonight and improve on that."
But there was no doubting the sense of a missed opportunity, with League Two Fleetwood the only team now standing in the way of a semi-final appearance for victors Everton. Burn reflected: "It's just very disappointing. It was a huge opportunity for us. Knowing the draw in the next round, it was a chance to win silverware so to come away with nothing is very disappointing. I think it's that ruthlessness in both boxes. They scored three goals without really having to do much, just poor defending from us. We're having to create too many chances or not making the right decisions in the final third. I thought between both boxes we were very good again, it sounds silly to say because we've lost 3-1, but the bits where we have to be clinical and we did well against Palace weren't there."
