Former Newcastle United player Malcolm Macdonald has raised his concern about head coach Eddie Howe and his record when it comes to defending.
Defence has been an issue for Newcastle United this season, with the Magpies currently holding the worst record in the division when it comes to goals conceded, with 37, even more than bottom of the table Norwich City.
And whilst Howe was brought in to try and get them out of trouble down the bottom of the table, according to MacDonald, he might not necessarily be the right man to fix the problem at the back.
Speaking on the latest edition of NUFC Matters ahead of their 3-1 defeat against Liverpool, MacDonald revealed that he had looked back at Howe’s record whilst he was at Bournemouth, and that he wasn’t too happy with what he saw when it came to their ability to keep goals out:
“I found something a little bit worrying. The best defensive season, they conceded 61 goals. That’s an awful lot, isn’t it? That’s an awful lot. Albeit, they were a side that flooded forward, and they scored a lot of goals, but their defensive record was quite shocking over five seasons.
“And so the problem with that is, is that all of a sudden if you if you’re not quite firing properly up front, your defence is still letting it all in. So where do you start? Do you tighten the defence up? Or do you motivate the forwards to get them scoring goals?”
TIF Thoughts on Malcolm MacDonald’s comments about Eddie Howe and Newcastle United
Will Howe save NUFC from relegation?
Yes
No
It certainly is a worrying statistic, and based on their start under Howe, conceding ten goals in his first five games, it doesn’t look as if the problem is going to be going away any time soon.
And whilst the January transfer window is just around the corner, with reports suggesting they are going to improve their backline with the addition of Kieran Trippier from Atletico Madrid, unless Howe is going to change his philosophy, or any additions that come in are far and beyond the talent level of what Newcastle United already have, it could just be a waste of time.
It may very well be that they are forced to return to the days of ‘The Entertainers’ and try to outscore their opponents, but on the surface it certainly looks like a problem that is going to need a lot of effort put into it to try and fix, and hopefully they’ll be able to do so before it is too late.
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