Following Newcastle United’s shocking loss to Aston Villa on Saturday, Eddie Howe refused to find any positives from the game
Eddie Howe, the Newcastle United manager, expressed that he was not interested in finding any positives from his team’s 3-0 defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday. Instead, he is looking for a response from his players.
The defeat saw Ollie Watkins maintain his excellent form for Villa as they recorded their fifth consecutive Premier League victory under the guidance of Unai Emery.
Newcastle United, who currently sit in third place, were outplayed throughout the match at Villa Park. The Villains dominated the game in regards to stats, including shots (15 to eight), shots on target (six to two), and expected goals (1.87 to 0.57). Aston Villa even hit the woodwork twice and had a goal disallowed during the game.
Newcastle’s five-game winning run came to an end with their heavy defeat at Aston Villa. This was their biggest loss in the league since a 5-0 defeat to Manchester City in May 2022.
Newcastle now faces Tottenham, who are also in the race for a top-four finish, and Howe is hoping for a positive response from his team.
Howe admits Newcastle were off ‘tehir best levels’ from the start
Speaking to BBC Sport, Howe said: “We were off our best levels right from the start. Aston Villa are a good team and we never got going.
“We’ve been consistently excellent this season. This is the first dip we’ve had; it can happen and we have to react.
“We were just off it in every respect. We’ve got a massive game next week. I’m not really looking for positives, I’m looking for a response.”
Aston Villa’s victory over Newcastle United meant they have won five consecutive Premier League games for the first time since the 1997-98 season.
The win also took them to 50 points from 31 games, their earliest reaching of that total since the 2009-10 season, where they finished sixth. They are currently in the same position and are only six points behind the top four.
“this is the first dip we’ve had and we have to react.“
– Howe
Jacob Ramsey opened the scoring for Aston Villa and Oliver Watkins scored a brace in the second half. Watkins was involved in more Premier League goals than any other player since the World Cup, with 15 goals.
“We are on a great run at the moment we are playing good football,” Watkins told BT Sport.
“Newcastle are a great side so it shows the levels we are at. We are enjoying it at the moment.
“[We are] trusting team-mates in tight areas and if we make mistakes we go again. Real togetherness in the team and looking forward to games to come.”
