Furious Jonjo Shelvey snubs Rafa Benitez’s handshake after being subbed in Newcastle’s 1-1 draw with Swansea
Midfielder played a key role in his side's equaliser before Benitez replaced him with Mikel Merino in the 82nd minute
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JONJO SHELVEY was furious with boss Rafa Benitez after being subbed in Newcastle's 1-1 draw with Swansea.
Tensions were running high at St James' Park with both sides embroiled in a relegation dog-fight.
And they appeared to get the better of the midfielder when he saw his number come up on the fourth official's board on 82 minutes.
After being replaced by Mikel Merino, Shelvey looked disappointed when he marched towards the home dugout.
The 25-year-old then appeared to swat away Benitez's handshake when the Spanish boss approached Shelvey.
Benitez played down the incident at full-time during his post-match press conference.
He said: "Any player, when you are not winning a game like this they have to be disappointed if they do not continue playing but we have to make our substitutions.
"I didn’t have any problem."
SUPER SUB Newcastle 1 Swansea 1: Substitute Joselu equalises with first touch of the game to pile the pressure on struggling Swans
Newcastle fell behind to rock-bottom Swansea on 60 minutes when Jordan Ayew headed the visitors in front.
But Shelvey played a key role in the equaliser when his defence-splitting pass found Ayoze Perez whose ricocheted shot fell to the feet of striker Joselu.
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Shelvey's future at Newcastle has been called into question with links of a move to West Ham.
The Hammers are ready to launch a £12million offer for the midfielder this month.