Newcastle United were noticeably different against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, and it resulted in a 3-0 win.
The Magpies picked up a massive three points at the weekend, while they also put an end to their disappointing run at St James’ Park. And they did it by playing a slightly different way.
Eddie Howe set his team out to sit a bit deeper than they normally would. That allowed Wolves to have more of the ball, which meant there was more space for Newcastle to hit them on the break.
They did that to great effect, and it allowed Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon and Tino Livramento to find the net.
Newcastle were massively aided by the return of Joe Willock and his athleticism, while a tactical tweak by Howe allowed his team to get back to winning ways in the league. And after the game, the Toon manager was keen to point out that he regularly tinkers with his plan amid complaints from watchers-on.
And the Athletic’s Chris Waugh believes Howe’s remarks may have been because of frustration over suggestions he does not change things.
Why Newcastle staff have been frustrated
On the latest episode of Pod On The Tyne, Chris Waugh discussed what has been frustrating Newcastle staff amid their recent struggles.
“I thought it was interesting that he made that remark because I think, behind the scenes, they have been getting frustrated by this suggestion that Howe just names the same XI, he makes the same changes at the same time in matches,” he said.
“That has become something that has followed him. I think there is a certain degree of reality behind that. There is a reason why people come to believe things because they see it with their own eyes.
“But there have been tweaks.”
Eddie Howe has been tinkering despite Newcastle complaints
In Howe’s defence, he has not had many opportunities to change things until now. The Wolves game was the first in a long time that he had a proper bench full of attacking options.
In recent months, he has had to stick with what he had available, which resulted in a largely consistent starting XI. But there were tactical tweaks. We saw Howe experiment with his midfield three, while Kieran Trippier operated as an inverted full-back against Nottingham Forest.
There have been plenty of subtle changes, so it is understandable that there have been frustrations over claims that Howe is reluctant to tinker.
But complaints like that are a product of disappointing results, and Newcastle have endured a lot of them lately.
However, hopefully the win over Wolves and the return of key players can result in us enjoying a sustained run of success.
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