Harvey Barnes’ touch map and key stats show how Newcastle can dismantle Athletic Club
Newcastle are looking to get back to winning ways in the Champions League after their surprise 3-1 defeat to West Ham on 2 November.
Alan Shearer did not hold back in criticising Newcastle as they lost on the road to an out-of-form Hammers side.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka was on top of his game for West Ham as they turned things around after conceding early on, courtesy of a Jacob Murphy strike.
The defeat is far from ideal for the Magpies who now must quickly shrug off their calamitous weekend as they face Athletic Club in the Champions League on 5 November.
Attacking numbers against West Ham a cause for concern for Eddie Howe
The stats against the Irons do not bode well for the Toon as they struggled to find the spark to dominate the game.
Following Murphy’s fourth minute strike, Eddie Howe‘s side were unable to find any sort of attacking rhythm, mustering just four shots on target during the 90 minutes.
Worryingly, with 63 per cent of the ball, the Magpies did little to cause the Hammers problems as they only amassed 0.52 xG, far lower than their opponent’s 1.75 xG.
On top of this, Newcastle’s average position map, courtesy of Football Insider’s data partnership with Opta, highlights how difficult they found it to get near West Ham‘s 18-yard box, with most of the players bunched together on the halfway line.
Additionally, the Toon were unable to create any big chances, which saw main striker Nick Woltemade hooked off at half-time as Howe panicked, attempting to find an alternative method to unlocking the Irons’ defence.
Harvey Barnes’ heroics vs Benfica needed for Newcastle to get their attack firing again
Crucially, in the Premier League defeat to West Ham, Anthony Gordon started the match but was hauled off at the interval due to injury and a poor first half.
With the attack not linking up the way it should do in the former Bournemouth manager’s system, the team needs a shake-up as they welcome Athletic Club to St James’ Park.
Newcastle are unbeaten in their last two Champions League games and, potentially set to be without Gordon, must turn to the brilliance of Harvey Barnes.
The ex-Leicester City man was one of the standout performers in their last European tie against Benfica on 21 October, netting twice to seal all three points.
What was so impressive about the number 11’s showing was his ruthless and clinical nature, scoring with both of his strikes on goal.
In his 27 minutes of action, the Englishman accrued just 11 touches on the ball as he was efficient with his impact off the bench.
Conversely, Barnes was a vital creative outlet, amassing one key pass and one big chance created in his short cameo, offering an obvious solution to Newcastle’s recent attacking woes.
Ahead of the tie against the Spanish outfit, Howe must turn to the former West Brom winger and unleash his attacking quality, as exhibited against Benfica, to bounce back after their shock loss against West Ham.