Howe ‘wasting his time’ at Newcastle after ‘contentious’ Athletic reveal – pundit
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe is “wasting his time” by speaking out about refereeing decisions, according to Noel Whelan.
The former Leeds striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, insisted referees are having no bearing on the Magpies’ league position.
As per BBC Sport (20 December), Newcastle have written to the Premier League to request an explanation after a number of recent refereeing decisions have gone against Howe’s side.
Quoted by the Athletic yesterday (23 December), the Magpies boss insisted there is a feeling of “unjustness” within the club after a number of “contentious” flashpoints.
When asked if Howe’s appeal is likely to change anything, Whelan told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury: “No, I can’t really see the point of doing that.
“It just seems like a big distraction from the main task at Newcastle, which is avoiding relegation.
“They’re not in that bottom three because of refereeing decisions, let me tell you that. They’re down there because they haven’t been good enough. Newcastle can’t stop conceding goals – in most games, they have to score three or four to win.
“It just strikes me as a bit of a waste of time from Eddie Howe, to be honest. Every team has poor refereeing decisions go against them. Newcastle are just complaining because they aren’t getting the results.”
Newcastle sit second-bottom of the Premier League after 18 games and are three points from safety.
The Magpies have conceded the most top-flight goals this season (41).
They have lost their last three league fixtures by an aggregate score of 11-1.
In other news, pundit is “sure” Lucas Digne wants to sign for Newcastle after “great” update on talks.