Newcastle United should give Eddie Howe a statue. Then sack him… | OneFootball

Newcastle United have outgrown Eddie Howe and will never be more than ‘good’ under their current manager…

That’s one take in the Mailbox, with another being that Liverpool remain the victims of a conspiracy.

As ever, get your views into theeditor@football365.com…

Eddie Howe: Nice but bin I come not to bury Eddie Howe, but to gently suggest he’s currently trying to fix a Lamborghini with a very polite spanner and vibes.

Now, before the pitchforks come out (Geordie edition, with extra shouting), let me say this: Howe is a good manager. He’s organised, articulate, and looks like he apologises to chairs after bumping into them. But good is not what Newcastle need anymore. Good got them out of trouble. Good got them respectable. Good is now… the ceiling.

And ceilings, as Opta would probably whisper while adjusting its glasses, are not where ambitious clubs want to live.

Let’s talk numbers — the sacred Opta tablets:

Since taking over, Howe’s win rate hovers respectably in the mid-40% range. Respectable. Like a B- student who reminds the teacher about homework.

Against the so-called “Big Six,” Newcastle’s points-per-game drops faster than a pundit’s trousers when a hot take goes wrong.

Expected goals (xG) for? Solid. Expected goals against? Also… solid. Which is another way of saying: “Congratulations, you are aggressively average with better PR.”

This is the problem. Newcastle are no longer a plucky project. They are a state-backed juggernaut with Champions League aspirations and a wage bill that suggests they should be doing more than politely exchanging chances with mid-table sides.

And yet, under Howe, they oscillate between “ooh, this is exciting” and “why are we crossing to absolutely nobody again?”

There’s also the small matter of evolution. Or lack thereof. Howe’s Newcastle still plays like a very well-coached Bournemouth side that’s accidentally wandered into a luxury showroom. High energy, yes. Pressing, yes. Tactical flexibility? About as flexible as a Sunday league centre-back after five pints.

When Plan A doesn’t work, Plan B appears to be… Plan A, but with more shouting.

The point isn’t that Howe is terrible. He isn’t. The point is that Newcastle have outgrown him — like a teenager suddenly realising their childhood bed is too small and slightly embarrassing.

You can thank him, build him a statue, name a training cone after him — but you don’t let sentimentality cap your ambition.

Because right now, Newcastle feel like a club stuck between chapters: no longer the underdog, not yet the powerhouse. And Eddie Howe, for all his virtues, feels like the manager for the previous chapter.

Nice bloke. Wrong chapter.

Yours in mild exasperation and excessive Opta references, Gaptoothfreak, Man. Utd., New York (A concerned neutral who just wants Newcastle to either be brilliant or chaotic — but not this weird, beige middle ground)

International conspiracy Just checked the wknd fixtures. Can someone please tell me if its a joke that Liverpool are away from home in the early Saturday kickoff after and international break AGAIN?!!!!

I do tend to have a laugh at the consipracy goons but this one is a statistical fact – someone on the scheduling side in a position of power hates Liverpool and this really needs to stop for the fairness of the game.

There’s a Guardian article from Nov 24th 2023 where I cad find the latest summary of this. At that stage there had been 28 early sat kickoffs after internationals since the 2016/17 season and Liverpool had played in 13 of them….basically half. That is insane. Data is over 2 years old but considering Pool play City (away from home again of course) in the league on such a fixture in Klopp’s last season and are doing so again this wknd in the cup, that is 2 more to add to Pools totals.

Get the tin hats out. this one is real. Patricio Del Toro

United should wait for WC flops Lots of conjecture this week re: United’s long term managerial appointment. I’m feeling quite a bit of trepidation in relation to it – the nagging feeling that we’ll take another misstep is hard to shake.

The one word that keeps bouncing around my mind is “trajectory”, because this season has been the first since 22/23 in which United have been on an upward curve. The downward spirals over the past 12 years have been rough – Moyes and Rangnick’s spells in charge, the stagnation of Van Gaal/Mourinho/Solskjaer/Ten Hag’s stints before they were sacked.

Amorim’s departure in January was the first post-Fergie example of United dispensing with a coach who could argue that they were in the process of putting something together and showing gradual improvement. As it’s turned out, Carrick appears to have been able to tweak things and accelerate that improvement.

By hook or crook, we’re now in a position we would have killed for at the start of the season. If Champions League qualification comes to pass, United then have a meaningful trajectory to sustain. Drawing boards don’t need to be dragged out of storage, square one can be ignored etc. Gradual improvement from that base would be perfectly fine.

But who then becomes the right man to take the job full-time? Carrick is the obvious answer because he’s injected the current momentum, but has no track record to reassure us that he can maintain it. Nagelsmann and Enrique bring a greater body of work, but also the prospect of implementing a brand new style and regime which could hit reset yet again.

There’s a third option which would entail playing a waiting game. I can’t help the feeling that one of England or Brazil is going to flop in the World Cup, which might see Tuchel or Ancelotti becoming available. I’d back either to come into an environment like United and use their experience to combine a return to Europe with a consistent league campaign while fully settling into their new surroundings. Provided, of course, that the board would allow them to do their jobs unimpeded.

The above are all imperfect prospects, and each one of them could go spectacularly sideways in the established style of United over the past 10+ years. But I do feel like we’re another handful of good decisions away from being a serious team again, and am hoping that the appointment of our next permanent manager is one of those good decisions. Keith Reilly

Maguire’s win-win Adidasmufc (Maybe it’s time for my vacation to Bali!) wrote: “If you were Harry Maguire and you were told that you were 5th choice and only likely to get playing time if the team was behind and you’d be stuck up front to try and nick a goal, would you be entitled to tell Tuchel to go stick it, considering Maguire is 33 and unlikely to feature internationally again?”

So, it’s Maguire’s last opportunity to represent England, and you think he should tell Tuchel to stick it? He’s potentially on the bench avoiding the best strikers in the world, with a chance to come on and score and make a name for himself? It’s win-win. What’s he going to do instead, go on holiday?

He struggled against 10 man Newcastle and Osula, the bench is absolutely the correct place for him. Simon S, NUFC, Cheshire

Iran out, Italy in Wonder how long it’ll be until Infantino invites Italy to the world cup instead of Iran. Or maybe they’ll just go in disguise?

Neil Raines

WAR! What is it good for? Saw the news about Abramovich deciding to change the use of his 2 billion from the sale of Chelsea and it got me thinking. The Prem decided that a Russian couldn’t own a football team because of the war in Ukraine and Russian involvement in it. Could that mean that they could now remove American owners ? What about American and Israeli owners ? Could this be Man Utd’s freedom plan? Akat (#freemanutd)

Spurs will get eaten alive

“…One of our teams is going down, my pedigree chum. If it’s the Hanmers I expect mockery…”

You can have some now for not spelling your team’s nickname right if you like my old china plate. For what it’s worth though, I hope you stay up at the expense of Spurs, because the championship will eat them alive in an incredibly amusing fashion. Plus, Joe Lewis losing his shirt would be poetic justice for Lagos Escondido alone, never mind the insider trading stuff. Sorry Spurs fans, not directed at you.

Also, lol Italy, the thought of the look on the faces of Chiellini & Bonucci filled me with petty joy. That’s for Saka, Giorgio. And Leo, the version you wanted was “We’re staying home, we’re staying home, we couldn’t beat a team of gnomes”.