Newcastle thrashed by Coventry as player ratings reveal poor displays

Newcastle United suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of newly promoted Coventry City on a difficult night for Matthias Jaissle's side, with defensive errors and missed chances proving costly.

Early penalty sets the tone

The Magpies made a dreadful start when Lukas Hornicek upended Sidiki Cherif in the box, and referee John Brooks pointed straight to the spot. Jack Rudoni stepped up and sent Hornicek the wrong way, and Coventry held on to that lead until half-time after a series of wasted chances from the home side.

Coventry doubled the lead on 48 minutes after a weak headed clearance from Malick Thiaw, before the ball fell for Cherif, who took a touch and lashed it past Hornicek. The teenager would miss another close-range chance that would have put the game to bed.

Late goals compound Newcastle's misery

Sven Botman made a forward run and lashed one beyond Carl Rushworth to reduce the arrears and make it 2-1 with 20 minutes to go. But late goals from Ellis Simms and Stephen Mfuni rubbed salt in the wounds as the home side punished Newcastle for mistake after mistake.

Here's how the Magpies fared in Coventry:

Lukas Hornicek 4 - Did not look certain from the opening moments and suffered some unconvincing moments as the goals rained in.

Lewis Miley 6 - Was perhaps a little unfortunate to be hooked in some ways. Being asked to step in and do a job for the team and made a couple of decent tackles in the first half. Had 47 touches in all but is more effective in midfield.

Malick Thiaw 4 - Struggled to stay on his feet in the early stages and looked shaky. An unconvincing clearance for goal number two did not inspire confidence.

Sven Botman 4 - Some unconvincing moments at the back and looked nervous but nobody can doubt the quality of the finish that hauled Newcastle back into it.

Lewis Hall 6 - After three weeks in the England camp this must have been a real wake-up call.

Joe Willock 3 - A horrible miss just before he was taken off typified his evening. A couple of threatening moments but did not play like a midfielder with stiff competition breathing down his neck. Out of five shots didn't register one on target.

Nico Gonzalez 5 - Could not get things moving for Newcastle and struggled on a tough night.

Jacob Murphy 3 - Didn't produce a dangerous moment and managed just one accurate cross. Rode his luck to stay in the team but then failed to grasp what could be his last Premier League start for a while.

Yoane Wissa 4 - An honest battler at times, but reacted too slowly as Cherif lashed home.

Harvey Barnes 4 - Simply not clinical when and where it mattered.

Matias Fernandez-Pardo 5 - Needs time to adjust to the Premier League, and offered a glimpse of what he could do when shimmying through in the first half before effort cleared off the line. Decision making and timing questionable.