Dan Burn has called on his Newcastle United teammates to end their poor run at Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium, insisting the Magpies cannot afford to switch off after a Champions League defeat. The defender issued a rallying cry following Tuesday's 2-1 loss to Barcelona, warning that the team must show the same intensity in Premier League fixtures as they do in European nights.
Newcastle have not won at Bournemouth since the Saudi-backed takeover in 2021, a period that coincides with former Cherries boss Eddie Howe's tenure. Burn acknowledged the issue, telling Chronicle Live: 'We've not played well there since I've been here anyway, so it's something we'll look to put right. It's a mentality thing; we can't just turn up to these big games against Barcelona and then not perform at the weekend.'
The 6ft 7in centre-back pointed to last weekend's 1-0 win over Wolves as an example of grinding out results despite not being at their best. 'We got that win at Wolves which I thought we needed, and probably not played as well as we've played before, but we got the win. Now it's important that we go and perform at Bournemouth and get the result that we want,' he added.
Burn also reflected on the Barcelona defeat, admitting the visitors showed their class in the second half but insisting the performance was encouraging. 'We played pretty well, to be honest. First half, everyone knew we were coming out to press Barcelona, and I don't think we were disappointed. We were lucky probably not to go in maybe a goal up, but second half, they really sort of showed their class,' he said.
With a run of league games ahead, Burn stressed the importance of consistency. 'Without being disrespectful, the rest of the teams that we're playing are winnable; it won't be Barcelona and PSG every week. There's games that are winnable in there if we turn up and play like we're supposed to,' he concluded.
