Newcastle United were not at their best on Tuesday night.
While Eddie Howe’s side at least booked their spot in the FA Cup quarter-finals, it was not pretty for Newcastle.
Indeed, playing a full-strength side (albeit injuries remain) and only squeezing past a team well below mid-table in the Championship is not exactly a great look.
Howe did tinker at least. While much has been made about his use of full-backs this season amid Dan Burn’s lack of form and Lewis Hall’s complete lack of gametime, the Magpies boss did change things around somewhat at Ewood Park.
Kieran Trippier, as noted by The Athletic’s Chris Waugh, operated as something of an inverted full-back for portions of the game.
Having largely shone as a traditional right-back despite a difficult spell of late since his £12m move from Atletico Madrid, one pundit was particularly surprised at that.
Kieran Trippier: Tom Cairney surprised at Newcastle star vs Blackburn
Speaking on Sky Sports, Fulham midfielder Tom Cairney expressed his shock at Trippier’s positioning.
“Trippier is sometimes going into midfield in possession,” he said.
“I’ve not seen it this season so far.
“I don’t know why they’re doing it, maybe to be more secure but it might be a new tactic Eddie’s applying.”
Kieran Trippier: How did Newcastle star play vs Blackburn?
Booed relentlessly by the home support given his previous career with their rivals Burnley, Trippier was still one of the more productive Newcastle players on the ball.
As per WhoScored data, he rivalled Anthony Gordon for four key passes and still managed to play in a team-high 11 crosses while finding the mark with six of his ten attempted long balls. Still, his set-piece delivery arguably left a lot to be desired.
It will be interesting to see if Howe continues with this experiment going forward. There will be tougher tests to come than Blackburn and it is difficult to suggest it was a resounding success against them.
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