Manchester United manager, Erik ten Hag, has explained why he took off Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez during their 2-0 defeat at Newcastle on Sunday.
The Red Devils suffered their second defeat in three matches at St James Park.
Joe Willock and Callum Wilson scored for the Magpies as they leapfrogged United into third place.
Late in the second half, Ten Hag took off Varane and Martinez at 1-0, replacing them with Victor Lindelof and Jadon Sancho.
Ten Hag, speaking to BBC Match of the Day, said: “We were not happy. We played too high in midfield and it was easy for their two centre-halves to go and attack.
“We had to play a little bit deeper. Therefore, we made the sub.
“Then we made changes to bring more energy. In the end we were losing so we decided to go with three at the back and play an extra offensive player and I decided to take both centre-backs off with Lindelof to defend the spaces.”
