Eddie Howe cut a despondent figure at the London Stadium on Sunday.
The Newcastle United head coach watched on as his side lost 3-1.
No one will argue that Newcastle deserved to win.
West Ham weren’t great but they were better than the visitors, busier than NUFC in the first half and then comfortable in defense after the break as Newcastle United failed to threaten despite dominating territory and possession.
Eddie Howe returned the starting XI to what was generally agreed to be the full strength of available players, having made eight changes for the Spurs cup tie.
The Head Coach then watched as Newcastle United, despite taking a lead in the fourth minute, failed to get going.
Eddie Howe acted quickly and tried to change things from the bench, making three substitutions after the break and then the other two options used in the 65th and 77th minutes, all to no avail.
After a result and especially a performance like that, all Newcastle United fans are absolutely entitled to ask questions in the aftermath. How and why this happened and of course what needs to be corrected. What needs to be changed, what needs to be improved, whatever.
But incredibly, some Newcastle United fans believe the change needed is… Eddie Howe.
This kind of pathetic overreaction happens almost every time United lose a match and/or play poorly. Scammers among the NUFC YouTubers are often at the heart of this, where they cynically go far over the top to attract attention and make extra money. They’re not alone, though: a small portion of the rest of the Newcastle United fanbase are doing the same, especially on social media. Going ahead with this latest result and performance from Newcastle United is the worst thing they have ever experienced, in fact the worst thing they have ever experienced in any aspect of their lives.
Eddie Howe is definitely to blame.
Eddie Howe is absolutely responsible for what he has delivered over the last four years, which has completely changed our lives as Newcastle United fans.
Eddie Howe creates hopes and even expectations that are so very different from what we experienced more than a decade and a half earlier.
Eddie Howe is far more responsible than any other person for these vastly increased hopes and expectations, and most fans fully appreciate this. However, a minority behaves quite shamefully. Ready to engage our brilliant manager at the slightest opportunity.
Eddie Howe has had such a difficult start to the season, with so many problems to solve and obstacles in his way. So many injuries to key players, as well as a pre-season and transfer period that has been completely compromised by you know who, and on top of that (some of) the most important signings (attackers) only coming so late in the period.
What I see more and more among those determined to take on Eddie Howe is that they completely dismiss all the positives and want to focus only on the negatives. So a position in the top eight in the Champions League with 36 teams and through to the quarter-finals of the League Cup for the fourth season in a row…
The answer from the anti-Howe brigade is: just look at the Premier League, it tells you everything, etc.
Of course, it’s not ideal that Newcastle United have a Premier League record of three wins, three draws and four losses. However, that’s not all that different from last season, when NUFC started with a record of four wins, three draws and three defeats in their first ten PL games. Eddie Howe had the answers then: he got United going and eventually qualified for the Champions League in the top five of the Premier League, oh yes, and won the trophy.
Eddie Howe and Newcastle United also have a much tougher schedule this season as they attack four competitions and in addition to their Premier League results have won four out of five in the Champions League and League Cup, with the sole exception of last season’s La Liga winners and Champions League semi-finalists Barcelona.
But he is only focusing on the Premier League… as his opponents desperately want.
Conveniently, we’ve now reached a point where we can judge Eddie Howe on four full years of Premier League results with Newcastle United. He was appointed on November 8, 2021 and with Brentford not away until Sunday, November 9, 2025, Eddie Howe will reach his fourth anniversary on Saturday.
This is Eddie Howe’s full Premier League record at Newcastle United so far, compared to rival clubs:
As you can see, Eddie Howe has made Newcastle United the fourth best team in the Premier League, the facts don’t lie.
That we have done this after taking over a Newcastle United side mid-season that will surely be relegated AND a club in total disarray, thanks to Mike Ashley and Steve Bruce, is absolutely astonishing from Eddie Howe.
Yes, doubts about team selection, tactics, substitutions, team line-up and of course the players themselves.
But don’t disrespect Eddie Howe.
As fans we can all have our own ideas about who should be on the team and so on, but that’s another thing entirely when we go over the top with criticism of Eddie Howe and even some of the crazy fringe figures who want to get rid of him.
Eddie Howe has earned our respect many times over, or at least he should have.
He has repeatedly shown that he is the man with the answers and he ensures that his teams achieve winning streaks time and time again. United had won five of their last six games before Sunday’s car crash at West Ham.
If you honestly believe that Newcastle United would be better off without Eddie Howe, then you are completely misguided.
#Eddie #Howe #blame