Eddie Howe has warned the players who have taken Newcastle United into the Champions League that they are vulnerable if the club’s form continues to falter.
Newcastle have lost six of their last seven games as their top four hopes have taken a serious dent after a desperate December.
January is now a big month for the club, with three of the top four and an FA Cup trip to their fiercest rivals Sunderland ahead. There is also a transfer window in which Howe is looking for reinforcements.
The Newcastle boss is not under immediate threat from a supportive hierarchy but he admits the losing run has made the club feel “uncomfortable”. His message after the defeat was that things could be repaired on the training ground – Newcastle’s run of fixtures has been unforgiving and given little time for preparation – but he told his players changes could be made.
“All options are open to us at all times. But I think you’ve got make a change that you feel benefits the team,” Howe said.
“I’ll be prepared to make any change that I think can benefit either the performance or the result and of course players are accountable for what they deliver. No amount of credit in the bank is big enough, you have to earn everything you get from the game.
“I’m a firm believer in that so players know they have to perform and we have to change our short-term form for sure.”
It was only a second home defeat in the Premier League and Howe said his team were “slightly off it”. He pledged to remain calm in the face of flatlining form.
“Whenever you lose games it’s an uncomfortable feeling for you, whenever your team’s not at its peak,” he added.
“We have to remain reflective and we have to make the right decisions for the team in the next few days.”
Kieran Trippier is typical of the team’s travails; so dependable before his recent slump in form. He told Amazon Prime after the game that he had been “nowhere near” his own high standards.
“We have been playing two games a week, week after week and some players aren’t used to that. My standards have dropped,” he said.
“I’m old enough to speak about myself and my standards have been nowhere near. I’ve faced enough setbacks in my career to know I can bounce back.”
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/DRa8Y9w
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