by When the red fuel light on the dashboard starts flashing drivers know they are on loan. It all depends on the make and model of the car but there will be 30, 40, maybe even 50 miles left in the tank. The problem is that Eddie Howe, unlike a driver, cannot steer his increasingly drained squad towards the refuge of a nearby filling station.
“We’re missing a lot of players,” says the Newcastle manager. “You can keep going for a while, but the longer it goes on, the harder it gets. We don’t have options to change players.”
Instead, Newcastle’s squad is missing 12 injured, or in the case of Sandro Tonali suspended, senior professionals must meet their fifth game in 15 days at Tottenham on Sunday before they face Milan at St James’ Park on Wednesday in Champions League. For now, the rotation remains.
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Given the size and severity of the injury list, it’s a minor miracle that Howe has seen his side land so successfully of late but Thursday’s 3-0 win at Everton was a reminder that those warning lights can’t blink. to be defied indefinitely.
Howe, however, is desperate to avoid Tottenham extending their one-point advantage in the Premier League over Newcastle. “Spurs was always a big game for both teams,” he says. “We have no doubts about the importance of this game.”
Because of its potential importance, Kieran Trippier will not be awarded the rest he is asking for. Trippier was often Newcastle’s best player and, in the manager’s words, “was a catalyst for so many good things to happen”. But England’s uncharacteristic right-back mistakes gave Everton victory. At 33, Trippier looks shattered, but also indispensable.
One of the reasons Howe arrives at the training ground by 6.30am every weekday morning is his obsession with continuing to fight in all areas, but perhaps the time has come to start to prioritize competitions?
In recent times Newcastle managers have never looked heartbroken when teams have gone out early in the cup. It was not due to any lack of ambition, but the case of Rafael Benítez and his collaboration prioritizing scrap relegation over cup glory.
Under Saudi Arabian ownership that remit has changed significantly but as a result of a combination of the need to comply with financial fairness player regulations, it could be argued that the tough, brutal game and bad luck left a squad that did not have to their ability to challenge simultaneously in the Premier League, Champions League, League Cup and FA.
At the end of last season’s fourth season, Newcastle achieved a superb result but their desire to stay firmly on the European map means the owner is desperate to return to next season’s edition of the showpiece competition. department. To make the task more complicated, they were also favorites to win the club’s first major trophy since the Fair Cup in 1969.
Howe deals with the accompanying pressure by placing himself in a world that is almost hermetically sealed. Any free time is dedicated to his family but, so singular is the approach, that neighbors in the suburb of Gosforth sometimes do not recognize a man whose determination to distract him sometimes leaves the house in disguise.
The geographical heart of Newcastle is located two miles across Townsend from his home but Howe is believed to have made just one shopping trip in the city center since arriving just over two years ago. Meals out in restaurants are still rare. Long gone are the days when fans bumped into Alan Pardew pushing a trolley around Waitrose in Ponteland or Benítez shopping in the Gosforth south branch of Sainsbury’s.
The improvement in the performance of individual players – especially Jamaal Lascelles, Fabian Schär, Joelinton and Miguel Almiron – clearly shows that he is doing something right. Still Howe’s mantra “integrity is our identity” has a limit. Perhaps understandably, injured defender Dan Burn told the BBC on Monday that he felt “psychologically” he had “played a full season” by the time the October international break arrived.
It’s debatable whether the exciting, high-speed, pressing style is sustainable long-term – and a reinforcement is expected in the transfer market in January – but the contrast between the team’s home and away record suggests this is the case. which plays heavily on the adrenaline that inspired St. James. ‘ Liberty of the Park.
Although Newcastle’s home record is almost unbeaten they have won just once away from home in the Premier League – 8-0 at Sheffield United. “It’s hard to understand,” says Howe. “Last year, our away form was very good.” Tottenham was a great place to start putting things right.
All eyes will be on Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka – no fault of Everton – as he, once again, takes on Nick Pope, whose dislocated shoulder will sideline him until at least April. Howe certainly has no reason to question the commitment of the Pope’s representative, who wore goalkeeper gloves during the lockout as he walked around his home because he missed “the job I love” dearly.
Perhaps the most important question is whether Howe and his band of “unbelievable” players are trying too hard?
