Kiwi striker Chris Wood has made an uninspiring debut for Newcastle United in the Premier League, after completing a blockbuster NZ$50 million move from Burnley this week.
Wood, 30, was named in the starting line-up against relegation rivals Watford, with the contest ending in a 1-1 deadlock.
But playing in front of a home crowd at Newcastle's St James Park, Wood failed to impress, with former Arsenal star Paul Merson highly critical of Wood's debut performance.
"He was poor," Merson says on Sky Sports Football Daily. "When you make your debut, you usually do well, don't you?"
The Newcastle midfielders couldn't create much for the Kiwi striker, something Merson forgives.
"I don't think he gets the service, I feel for him in that way. He didn't really touch the ball too many times… not through his fault though.
"But the number of times [Ryan] Fraser went down the wing or [Allan] Saint-Maximin on the other side, and [Wood] never crossed the ball, it was a lot of times."
Wood took three off-target shots, had a pass accuracy of 63.2 percent, won four headers, took 35 touches and attempted one dribble - statistics Merson says aren't good enough.
"When you're playing against a team like Watford, who haven't kept a clean sheet all season, and you bring in a centre-forward [to try] and get you out of trouble… and he never looked like scoring… it's a little bit worrying."
The draw means Newcastle remain in the relegation zone in 19th place on 12 points, two behind Watford.
Newcastle's Saint-Maximin put the hosts in front four minutes after halftime with a superb solo effort, capitalising off an error from Watford's Jeremy Ngakia.
The visitors then turned up the pressure, with Joao Pedro heading home a late equaliser in the 88th minute.
Wood will look to prove his worth in Newcastle's next match, when they face his old club, Leeds United, on January 23.
