Rafael Benitez has suggested that losing Aleksandar Mitrovic early on in Newcastle United's 1-1 draw with Birmingham City acted as a turning point in the match.

The Serbia international picked up a nasty-looking injury in the build-up to the Magpies' opening goal at St Andrew's Stadium, which was cancelled out by Lukas Jutkiewicz prior to the interval.

Benitez believes that his side were "dominant" in the opening stages of the contest and were good value for their lead when it arrived through Daryl Murphy - his first goal for the club - but he is unsure how long Mitrovic now faces on the sidelines.

"I think to lose Mitrovic it means something because we had the control, we were creative, we were dominant," he told NUFC TV. "Then we started giving them the chance to pass the ball and we lost this control. Then you have players who were not playing for a while, it is not easy to keep the tempo and intensity.

"We have to wait [for Mitrovic update]. It's a cut, maybe his knee, his leg. We'll have to wait when he gets back from the hospital what they say to us. We knew that he was training and just thinking about playing well in this game, and it was a pity because we had to take him off.

"It changed everything for him and changed everything for us, because he was ready for this game and I think for us, in terms of the game plan, it also changed everything."

Mitrovic has made 17 appearances for United in all competitions this season, scoring seven times in all.