- Newcastle boss Eddie Howe sent a warning to his side after losing to Arsenal
- He said his side are playing for their future ahead of the FA Cup tie against Blackburn
- Newcastle have gone backwards this season. They are ambitious and have all the resources, but what is the plan for the future? – It all starts podcast
Eddie Howe has reminded his Newcastle team that they are playing for their future after failing to apologize for Saturday’s dismal performance at Arsenal.
The head coach has previously tried to defend his players after poor performances this season, but this time there was no protection.
Howe says ‘every aspect’ of their play wasn’t good enough during the 4-1 defeat and ahead of Tuesday’s FA Cup tie at Blackburn he was asked if the team needed to remember their future at the club was at stake stands.
“I can’t disagree with that sentiment,” he said. “There have been performances where we haven’t been at our best and you can understand that: we have been inconsistent, had players out of position, no substitutes and relied on eleven players all the time. This game was different. We simply did not perform and we must take responsibility for that.
“We have to do better in many areas of the game. That performance stands alone this season. With the others, there was usually a reason for it and we can find out where the performance came from. For whatever reason, every aspect of our game was wrong.”
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe warned his players they are playing for their future after their dismal defeat to Arsenal
The Magpies were torn apart by the Gunners to continue their poor league form
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Besides the bottom three, only Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest have conceded more than Newcastle’s 45 goals this season.
Howe said: “We don’t want to be easy to play against. We want to be very difficult to play against. We didn’t execute what we wanted to do well enough against Arsenal. That is obvious. This is reflected in the performance and I take responsibility for that.
‘We have to find solutions with the different players we have now to be effective defensively and effective the other way, and at the moment the balance is not right. But I think no matter how you set it up tactically, it’s individuals doing their job and making sure you don’t make individual mistakes. I think we’ve been guilty of a combination of these things in recent weeks.”
Howe’s team were praised for their ‘mean’ and ‘streetwise’ tactics last season on their way to a top-four finish. Where did that go?
Howe said the players were ‘hurt’ as they tried to bounce back against Blackburn
“To some extent, that’s epitomized by the makeup of your team,” he said. ‘It is always the individuals who create the characteristics. We’ve lost a bit of our experience in that regard and the game management hasn’t been that good. It’s something for us to look at.
‘But I don’t think you can force that on players. They either have it, or they don’t. Sure, there are things you can say and do to your players, but you can’t change their characters. Our midfield is different. Our front line was different. Our back line was different. The players who come in then create the personality of the team.’
However, Howe is relieved they have a match so soon, with 7,000 Geordies set to follow them to Ewood Park on Tuesday.
“The players were in pain,” he said. ‘They are really good people, people, they want to do well, they want to please, they want to represent the club in the right way. I always felt that through them. They will get hurt right now. That’s why it’s very good that there will be another competition soon.’