Eddie Howe furious with what he saw vs Leverkusen as Newcastle stars blasted: ‘Everything is annoying’
Eddie Howe has been left scathing in the aftermath of Newcastle United’s 2-2 draw away at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday.
The Magpies fell behind in the early stages through a Bruno Guimaraes own goal, but goals from Anthony Gordon and Lewis Miley turned the game in their favour after half-time.
Alejandro Grimaldo ultimately broke Newcastle hearts, as he struck an 88th-minute equaliser for the hosts to rob the visitors of a famous European victory.
The away side’s inability to successfully close out the game could have a major impact moving forward, as they now look set to face a battle to qualify for the next phase of the Champions League.
Eddie Howe reveals rage at lack of ‘belief’ from Newcastle
Nick Woltemade had a quiet night for Newcastle at the top of the pitch, as he struggled to hold the ball up and drag his teammates away from their own goal.
However, he was far from the only player to struggle for the away team on Wednesday night, especially in the first half, when they struggled to impose themselves on the game.
The Geordies went into the half-time interval on the wrong end of a one-goal deficit, and Howe has since admitted that he blasted his group during the break.
“I was not happy with the way that we performed in the first half, not that it was particularly bad,” Howe told Chronicle Live.
“We did not play with belief in both phases. You have to make things happen and really believe internally. Off the ball, we were getting close to them but not in that final yard.”
The Newcastle boss then added that he didn’t find the timing of the late equaliser from Leverkusen concerning for his team.
“It is not the timing, it is the way we are conceding,” he continued.
“Everything is annoying about not winning. We feel it all through the group. I have to see the bigger picture. Goals happen in games, and we haven’t defended well enough today. It was too easy for them to go through the middle of our defence.”
The Magpies’ Champions League campaign hangs in the balance
Newcastle’s draw with Leverkusen in midweek will have provided Howe with even more frustration, considering that they were sitting inside the top eight in the Champions League prior to their late concession.
The North East outfit are now occupying 12th spot in the league phase, but they have two awkward fixtures to navigate if they are to safely secure themselves a place in the next round.
| Date | Opponent | H/A |
| 21 January | PSV Eindhoven | H |
| 28 January | PSG | A |
They welcome PSV Eindhoven to St James’ Park in January, with the Dutch side currently top of the Eredivisie and having also recently notched an impressive 4-1 away win over Liverpool.
Newcastle will then conclude their campaign with a trip to take on reigning European champions PSG, in what is a nightmare final fixture.
Howe’s men currently have a four-point gap to Benfica, who sit just outside the play-off positions, but they are also two points behind the all-important top eight.
At the moment, a two-leg play-off looks to be the most likely outcome, but defeat to PSV would heap pressure on that final game at the Parc Des Princes.