Nobby Solano: “When you know you aren’t going to get a top-five finish in the Premier League then you HAVE to go for it in the FA Cup.
“I can’t understand why they haven’t.
“I know that there are injuries but Newcastle weren’t at full strength against Brighton.
“Man United, Arsenal and Chelsea can get away with playing kids and resting players because their kids are on a different level.
“But it’s not like Newcastle are saving players’ legs for a challenge for the Champions League.
“The FA Cup was the best route to success.
“It gets you back into Europe and that was important because they won’t be going back there via the Premier League.
“I feel sorry for the supporters. You always have to go for it in the cup.
“In my first season we did it with Ruud Gullit and the city was buzzing all the way through to the final.
“The city loves a cup run, it gets everybody excited and it helps you win league games too. It is a nice distraction and you are better off being in it, even with extra games.
“We also came close with Bobby Robson in charge, he was desperate to win it for the fans. We took 35,000 Geordies to Wembley (for a semi-final) and they took over.
“You just pray one day that might happen again.
“Newcastle haven’t won anything for many years, I can’t understand why they didn’t play a stronger side.”
“I know that Yohan Cabaye and Hatem Ben Arfa are out and they are very important players.
“But at the moment Newcastle aren’t playing as a team. They are doing their own thing.
“They are taking too many touches on the ball.
“The strikers aren’t getting any quality service from the wingers and they don’t look compact in defence. They must start playing as a team – not individuals.
“They are under a lot of pressure.
“They are out of the two cup competitions in England and they have to concentrate very hard now or they will get relegated.
“There are worse teams, but QPR will pick up.
“I know there is disappointment in the camp at the moment but they need to turn things around.”