Mood is lowest its been, says Newcastle's Fraser

Despite staying outside the relegation zone, Saturday's thumping by Brighton showed indications that Newcastle might drop to the bottom three.

Newcastle's head coach Steve Bruce reacts during the English Premier League soccer match between Brighton and Hove Albion and Newcastle United at the Falmer stadium in Brighton, England, Saturday, March 20, 2021

Newcastle United remains outside the Premier League's bottom three but the abject nature of Saturday's 3-0 defeat by fellow strugglers Brighton & Hove Albion did not bode well for its hopes of avoiding the drop.

Steve Bruce's side was comprehensively outplayed as Brighton cruised to victory with goals by Leandro Trossard, Danny Welbeck and Neal Maupay.

The visitors failed to register a shot on target and is now six games without a league win, leaving the Magpies in 17th place, two points above third-from-bottom Fulham.

To rub salt into its wounds Newcastle lost midfielder Isaac Hayden to what looked a serious knee injury shortly before Trossard's opener on the stroke of halftime.

READ | La Liga: Madrid up to 2nd with Benzema brace, Sevilla draw through an unlikely hero

"The mood is the lowest it's been. We just weren't good enough," said Newcastle winger Ryan Fraser, who hit the post shortly before Welbeck made it 2-0.

"It was a must-win game after doing alright in the last couple of weeks. It didn't happen for us tonight.

"Conceding just before halftime after the injury was a low blow. The second goal was identical to their first. It was a little bit too easy. We need to save our season now."

While Newcastle had drawn its previous three matches, it has managed only two wins from its last 18 and with a tough run of fixtures to come after the international break, the team is in a desperate battle to remain a top-flight team.

READ | Last-gasp Haaland goal gives Dortmund 2-2 draw at Cologne

"We're not in the bottom three yet and we've still got games remaining," Fraser said. "If we go and win our next game it looks rosy again. We've still got to play Fulham too."

Bruce will come under further pressure after what he described as "a painful evening" on the south coast.

"We weren't anywhere near the levels we need to be at. I take full responsibility for that. Unfortunately, it unravelled very, very quickly," he said.

"There's a lot of disappointment. Over the last few weeks, I've seen a degree of togetherness and fight, but we've got to be better than we were tonight to give ourselves a chance."