Is a draw against Bayer Leverkusen enough, or should Newcastle United have taken all three points last night in Germany?
At half-time, Newcastle looked to be out of the tie with Bayer Leverkusen leading 1-0 thanks to a Bruno Guimaraes own goal.
Another Newcastle United player questioning the team’s mentality. This is getting worrying, isn’t it? 👀
An Anthony Gordon penalty levelled the score in the second half before a special Lewis Miley goal looked like it would clinch all three points for the Magpies.
However, a late equaliser for Leverkusen spoiled the party and Eddie Howe has been hit with some pretty familiar criticism by the fans after the game.
Another late goal costs Newcastle United
On Twitter/X, supporters lamented the fact another late goal had cost Newcastle points, a recurring pattern this season.
One fan described it as a “Frustrating night,” while another simply begged the team to “Please stop conceding late goals.”
Digging into the problem more, one supporter pointed out: “The times when teams consistently equalise against Newcastle after a win: Leverkusen 88, Burnley 94, Brentford 95, West Ham 97, Brighton 85, Arsenal 84, Arsenal 96, Liverpool 100.”
Another added: “Watching this is so annoying. Lewis Miley should be lapping up loads of praise from the fans who have travelled there but it’s now a disappointment because we can’t see out a game.”
Others hit out at Howe’s game plan, writing: “Turn up and watch a low block team every game! Score a goal and place ten in defence encouraging teams to score! Only plan is hit them on a break and hope for a goal!”
The same sentiment was shared on Reddit, too. One supporter hit the nail on the head, posting: “So many times when we go ahead we just sit and invite pressure, which inevitably leads to a goal.”
Another added: “So disappointing how we’ve lost the ability to see out games this year – we could be right at the top of both tables if we could hang on for the last 10 minutes like we used to.”
- READ MORE: Eddie Howe hits the nail on the head as Anthony Gordon’s transformation saves Newcastle United again
Now the dust has settled, how do you really feel about Newcastle’s draw with Bayer Leverkusen?
Annoying to concede late, but a point on the road in Europe is always a good result.
Eddie Howe assesses the problem
In fairness, before the game, Newcastle fans would have taken a draw. The problem is, when you’re leading so late in a match, anything less than a win feels like a defeat.
Howe tried to put his finger on the problem of the late goals when speaking to TNT Sports after the game, but he sounded frustrated and unable to quite figure it out.
“I don’t know at this minute in time,” he told TNT Sports. “We haven’t defended the two goals well enough today, regardless of timing.
“The first is a disappointment for us, set play. It’s made our night very difficult. From there we’ve navigated it really well. The second one, I need to see it again but it seemed too easy for them to go through the middle of our defence so we need to look at it.”
Whatever the issue is, Howe and his players had better find a way to solve it ahead of the big derby on Sunday!
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