Nick Pope looks done and Eddie Howe might not be far behind after another Newcastle away collapse | OneFootball

Newcastle United briefly silenced the Velodrome, but their away-day fragility returned with a vengeance in a calamitous second half against Marseille in the Champions League.

The Magpies thrived in what has been deemed a hostile atmosphere in the first half, raising question marks over their away form in the Premier League.

How can Bournemouth away be more intimidating than Marseille? Those supporters are very close to the pitch, to be fair…

Fans might have felt unsafe roaming the streets of Marseille and getting in and out of the stadium, but Eddie Howe and his players seemed unfazed in the first half on Tuesday night, taking the lead through That Man Again, Harvey Barnes, in the sixth minute.

The Newcastle players might have felt fearful for the first time as the referee waited for VAR confirmation on a potential offside, but for the second game in a row, the decision went their way.

Newcastle’s woes on the road felt irrelevant on a potentially great Champions League night, but it all went pear-shaped in the second half.

In the first five minutes of the second half, more specifically.

There were a few worrying signs in the first half as Newcastle did what they always do after taking the lead away from home: invited pressure. But Marseille did the same with an overly attacking approach, the sort you are more likely to see from teams chasing an equaliser with 15 minutes to go, not 15 minutes in.

Roberto De Zerbi’s men were open at the back, but the Magpies couldn’t punish them, failing time after time with their final ball. And when they were through on goal, Geronimo Rulli stood tall and thwarted any proper chances.

The Argentinian goalkeeper didn’t stand tall when he got near big Dan Burn, though. In a bizarre but successful attempt to buy a foul from a long throw-in, he stepped way out of his goal and threw himself to the ground as soon as Burn breathed on him. There was instant karma when the Newcastle defender accidentally stood on his head. Maybe the karma was a bit excessive in this instance, but Marseille came back to win 2-1, so it evened out, we guess.

Rulli carried on with a big white bandage around his skull, and it was Newcastle’s Nick Pope who looked like he had some kind of head injury when his side’s lead was cancelled out by former Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Aubameyang sent plenty of warning signs in the first half but clearly hadn’t put his shooting boots on. He missed chance after chance, the best of which was a header from inside the box he should’ve hit the target with. Nothing wrong with his boots there; it was just a s**t finish.

Pope dealt with everything thrown at him in a relatively comfortable first half. His shot-stopping has never been up for debate; he is outstanding at that. But the modern-day things like rushing out, sweeping, and kicking continue to let him down. Doing anything other than getting his huge frame in the way of the ball seems to make Pope self-combust at times, and his decision-making once again cost Newcastle, just as it did when Arsenal scored a late winner at St James’ Park this season.

As Aubameyang latched onto a tasty through ball, he was met by the onrushing Pope, who was easily rounded before watching the ball roll into the goal within a minute of the second half restarting. On another day, he might have got away with it, but Aubameyang’s finish was elite. After some shoddy finishing in the first period, it became clear the Gabonese legend had found his shooting boots during the break.

The tight-angled finish that swerved in perfectly, but agonisingly for Pope and Newcastle, was swiftly followed by a second Aubameyang goal, which ended up being the winner.

Pope wasn’t to blame for this one; it was a good cross into a dangerous area, but the finish and run from the experienced striker made it. Newcastle were rattled and couldn’t find an equaliser.

It’s another poor result on the road for Howe, who must find a solution to the worrying away-day woes. That’s three trips in a row Newcastle have gone 1-0 up in and lost after 3-1 defeats at West Ham and Brentford. It’s an extremely worrying trend, and Newcastle fans are left pondering for what feels like the 200th time this year: will we ever learn?

Newcastle reached a new nadir on Tuesday night, and it’s clear that a change in personnel, like Pope for Aaron Ramsdale, isn’t enough; it’s time to change their mentality. They are winless away from home in the Premier League this season. In fact, their last league win not at St James’ came in April against an awful Leicester City.

Everton now await, and after their victory at Manchester United, the Toffees will be full of confidence. Still, for a team like Newcastle with top-five ambitions, it’s a game they should be winning.

Howe has between now and Saturday evening to find a winning formula; if he doesn’t, there are going to be serious questions about his ability to take this team forward.