Eddie Howe has shared his support for Lewis Miley after the Newcastle United midfielder faced backlash on social media this week.
There is no doubt that the Magpies have a brilliant star on their hands with Lewis Miley, a 19-year-old midfielder who has already made an impact after his debut at the end of the 2022/23 season.
Miley has already made 50 appearances for Newcastle, a sensational achievement given the quality players ahead of him in the pecking order. The Englishman has even played in the Champions League at such a young age, helping him even more at such a young stage in his career.
However, it was made known to Eddie Howe that Miley was forced to disable comments on social media due to the comments he had received on a recent post celebrating his appearance milestone.
The comments will surely only fuel Miley, but in the meantime, Howe has given the youngster some brilliant advice for the future.
Eddie Howe tells Lewis Miley to surround himself with loved ones after social media ‘stick’
Howe praised Miley for his performance against Bournemouth, his first start of the season. He was then rewarded with a start in the Carabao Cup against Bradford City, where he put in a brave performance as the deeper midfielder of the three.
Miley wanted to leave Newcastle on loan during the summer transfer window, but Howe was insistent that he did not want him to go due to the busy schedule. The youngster may be taking some time off from social media for now, but Howe has given the midfielder some much-needed advice in his pre-match press conference.
“I was aware of there being something,” he said.
“I’d be amazed if that was the case because he’s so talented and so young. It’s easy to forget just how young he is.
“He’s very mature for his age though and we encourage the players to surround themselves with family and friends – people they trust.”
Joelinton comes to Lewis Miley’s defence after social media comments
Miley’s display against Bradford was very promising. The Bantams were by no means an easy side to play following their bright start to the 2025/26 season. Despite a mistake leading to their goal, Miley made the most passes against Bradford, allowing the likes of Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes to push further forward and make a big impact on the game.
Joelinton can sympathise with Miley to an extent. It was a difficult start to life on Tyneside for the Brazilian when he arrived in 2019 under Steve Bruce. It took Howe moving him into the midfield for him to finally prove his worth to the club, but even that took over two years.
Speaking to the Northern Echo about Miley after the Bradford win, Joelinton was very complimentary of the midfielder.
“Lewis is a great character, a great young lad. Every year he’s getting better. He’s a top professional and I think he has a great future ahead of him,” he said.
“It’s always difficult when you see your teammate get stick, I had a difficult time here, I know how it is.
“I know the fans are behind the team and a really good young player. He played really well on Sunday.
“The team has to get better and everyone has to look in the mirror and get better.”
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