05 February 2024 , 12:00
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Eddie Howe is getting the cosiest ride through a storm of any Newcastle manager in the last 20 years.
But credit, banked from a near two year rise, is being eroded. It’s hard to criticise the Newcastle boss after his fourth placed finish last season, a cup final, and a first phase rebuild for new Saudi owners.
Now the erratic nature of results, performances and levels of defending since early December could mean Howe is facing a battle to show he is the man to lead Phase 2 of Newcastle’s transformation.
It’s not a good look to have your own crowd chanting for sub Tino Livramento to come on. Dan Burn had been scorched for an hour by pacy winger Chiedoze Ogbene, but was left out there to concede a penalty and suffer.
Where was the in-game tactical intervention to put Burn out of his misery before he conceded a penalty? The home crowd had seen the problem in the first half, and Livramento was better suited to shut it down.
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Newcastle have conceded ten goals in their last three home games. They’ve leaked 15 goals in their last five league games. A blip, becoming a trend.
Why? Howe blamed a loss of “athleticism” in a midfield missing injured Joelinton and Joe Willock. “That's not a criticism of the three players who played…our midfield dynamic looks different,” he explained, saying they miss “the pace of Willock and the ball-winning abilities of Joelinton.”
Injures have played a big part in the slump of six defeats in nine league games, with two wins.
Nick Pope has been a huge miss after suffering a shoulder injury (PA)That is not the form which gets you back into Europe - probably top seven - and the very minimum the Saudis will want seven months after saying they wanted to “be No1”. And neither is being smashed for four, by fourth bottom Luton.
Nick Pope is also unavailable with a dislocated shoulder. With Pope they conceded 19 goals in the first 21 games of the season until December 2. With Martin Dubravka in goal they have leaked 26 goals in the last 13 games.
“We've picked up more injuries, we've lost key players. We can't make excuses for that, but that is the reality.”
Howe is so well supported, any debate about him is prefaced by: “I rate Eddie Howe, but….” Or, “I love Eddie Howe, however…”
Fans understand the mitigating factors. Increased workload, fatigue, more injuries, fewer impact players to freshen up during games, and less time on the training ground. But there has always been a strong first choice XI available, and in several games they’ve been alarmingly vulnerable to opponents who break well.
Two-goal Sean Longstaff admitted: "We are a front-foot team and if you are a couple of yards off, it carries through the team. "We should win this game. It has probably been the story of our season. A little bit up and down and a little bit inconsistent.”
Expectations are being lowered, and it feels like this summer will be one of churn, and a new rebuild started. How can Newcastle be so ruthless against Aston Villa, back to their best, then leak 4 goals in 41 minutes to be 4-2 behind?
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Howe added: “You can’t compare two games, they’re so different. You’re playing a different opponent and the pressures on us were different. The expectation was there for us.”
At least Newcastle are scoring and entertaining. That’s 48 in the league this season, the fifth best haul.