Newcastle Fans Slam Spanish Forward as 'Absolute Liability' Following Draw at Bournemouth

Newcastle surrendered a two-goal lead with ten minutes remaining at Bournemouth on Saturday, as Dan Gosling's 89th minute equaliser kept the Magpies firmly entrenched in the relegation mire.

Despite their late defensive collapse, it was one of Newcastle's forward players who came in for the most criticism from the Toon army, with fans on Twitter labelling him as "an absolute liability", and urging manager Rafa Benitez to "find a replacement".

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Ayoze Perez's afternoon was a story of misplaced passes and missed chances in front of goal, including one presentable chance which fell to him after a free-kick. He blasted over the opportunity to make it 3-0, and was left to rue his miss after Bournemouth's fightback. 

The Newcastle fans were full of praise for their side despite the late collapse, but Perez came under severe scrutiny on social media.

Dwight Gayle's double at the Vitality Stadium took him onto five goals for the season, meaning that he surpassed Perez as Newcastle's top scorer. Perez and Joselu are now tied for second place with four goals each.

After Perez spurned his gilt-edged chance, Bournemouth fought back thanks to a howitzer from Adam Smith and a tap-in from former Newcastle player Dan Gosling one minute from time.

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Perez joined Newcastle from Tenerife in 2014 and has made 139 appearances for the Magpies, but has scored just 29 goals in that time. At a ratio of one goal every 4.8 games, it is easy to see why Newcastle fans have lost their patience.

Saturday's draw means that Newcastle are still just two points clear of the relegation zone and may slip further into trouble next week, when they face a tough trip to Liverpool.