Eddie Howe ‘to resign’ call after Newcastle’s 7-2 Barcelona loss before Sunderland derby | OneFootball

Eddie Howe faced calls to consider resigning after Newcastle United were beaten 7-2 by Barcelona, days before the Tyne-Wear derby with Sunderland.

Newcastle were competitive before the interval but collapsed after the break amid defensive errors. The defeat completed an 8-3 aggregate exit and marked their heaviest loss in a European knockout tie. According to Sunderland Echo, the fallout included calls for Howe to offer his resignation.

talkSPORT presenter Adrian Durham led the criticism, urging Howe to offer his resignation and describing the second half as a capitulation and a mess.

Former West Ham striker Dean Ashton urged caution, arguing that with the derby imminent he would not go as far as calling for Howe to resign, and noting how easy Newcastle made it for Barcelona.

“A tough way to go out. They deserved to go through,” Howe said, speaking to TNT Sports.

“Now it's all about Sunderland,” he said. “We've got to play like our lives depend on it.” Newcastle will seek a response after losing 1-0 in December’s reverse fixture.

Source: Sunderland Echo