Newcastle have kept the run going with the 2-0 win at Brentford on Saturday. The three points move Newcastle up the table to 14th but there is still work to be done as the cushion to 18th is only 4 points.
Eddie Howe hasn’t pulled many surprises in his team selection over the run. He’s primarily kept with a consistent starting eleven only making changes when forced.
That continued with an unchanged team at Brentford yesterday. Though some fans will have noticed a slight alteration when the lad lined up on the pitch.
Howe swapped the wingers from last week’s draw at West Ham. Ryan Fraser moved to the left, where he was often deployed at Bournemouth under Howe. Jacob Murphy was back on his more natural side.
After the match, Howe was first asked by NUFC TV about how pleased he was with the performance and responded:
“Very pleased. Difficult game. We knew today was going to be really tough.
“The sending off changes the task in front of us but it doesn’t necessarily make it easier.
“They were always going to drop deep and defend with numbers back there. We had to be creative to try and break them down.
“I thought we were very good down the sides of the pitch with Ryan Fraser, Matt Targett, Jacob Murphy, and Emil Krafth.
“I thought we really did well down the sides with a number of balls in the box. Eventually the weight of those paid dividends for us.”
Newcastle constantly got balls into the box, especially from the left where Fraser and Targett combined to launch 21 crosses. The tactical change seemed to benefit both wingers.
Murphy’s game suits that of a natural winger using his pace to get to the byline. Fraser’s ability to cut inside kept Brentford defenders on their toes.
Howe was then asked about switching the wingers from last week. Here was his response delivered with a slight smile:
“Well spotted. We switched Ryan over, and Murphy over. For tactical reasons really, just looking at our opponent.
“I haven’t wanted to change too much since our run has started. When you find good chemistry in the team, I’m reluctant to break it.
“I think you have to tweak and change for your opponent. So we’ve done that in many ways throughout this run.
“This was one of those things where we felt they would play with five at the back because that has been their consistent system. They changed today, which surprised us but it was because of that.”
Now the focus shifts to next weekend against Brighton before a run of four games in ten days. Other Magpies could come into play during the compact schedule.
Howe has gotten shifts out of Krafth and Murphy in recent weeks while Bruno Guimaraes added a new dimension when getting his first lengthy run-out yesterday.
3 comments so far
CLINT FLICK
Feb 27, 2022 at 11:32 AM
Comment #1.
CLINT FLICK
Feb 27, 2022 at 11:36 AM
Comment #2I’d like to dedicate this first to…
…Romford Mag…there ya go , brotherman!
😉
AnyToon in Indiana
Feb 27, 2022 at 4:23 PM
Comment #3Third!….whew…that was difficult