Matt Ritchie urges Newcastle United to stay focussed

London, September 18: The 2-1 victory over Stoke made it three wins in a row for Newcastle United, but Matt Ritchie has urged his teammates to keep their feet on the ground and take each game as it comes.

"That's [staying at the top end of the table] the challenge and that's the aim. We go into every game believing we can take something from it" said Ritchie as reported by talksports.com.

"We're not stupid - we understand the Premier League is tough and you can't win every game - but it's how you react to defeats and setbacks.

"We've got a massive game away at Brighton at the weekend, and we have to make sure our feet are firmly on the floor going into that game, and it'll need a good performance to take anything from it."

Captain Jamaal Lascelles scored the winning goal against Stoke, heading past Jack Butland from a Ritchie delivery with just over 20 minutes of regulation time to play.
It was his second goal in as many games, having also converted a Ritchie corner with his head to beat Swansea the previous week.

He has led by example, and Ritchie feels the 23-year-old is finally getting the praise he deserves for the work he does throughout the club.

"Rightly so he gets the plaudits [after his goals], but he's been fantastic throughout the club.

"In the dressing room the captain has a big impact. When the summer wasn't smooth sailing, he had a big part to play in the dressing room being calm and focused, and his performances so far this season have been fantastic. Hopefully that can continue."