Eddie Howe hits back at Alan Shearer over ‘lazy’ remarks but makes Newcastle United admission
The Magpies were simply awful at West Ham but now head across London in a bid for their first away win of the campaign in the Premier League
Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe and (inset) Alan Shearer
Eddie Howe has hit back at claims that Newcastle United were “lazy” in their 3-1 defeat at West Ham following scathing remarks from Alan Shearer last weekend.
The Toon legend did not hold back when branding the horror show at the London Stadium as: “Lazy. Leggy. Lethargic.” But Howe – who bounced back from the loss to the Hammers with a Champions League win over Athletic Bilbao – says he is prepared to use the criticism as fuel ahead of the encounter with Brentford.
When asked if he would pin Shearer’s comments to the dressing room wall, Howe told Chronicle Live: “I have done before – I am not saying I will for this game.
“But I will use any source of motivation I can for the players.
“Lazy? I would disagree with that.
“It might have looked lazy, but absolutely – and I will speak on behalf of my players – they are not.
“We looked lethargic in the game, but it wasn’t through a lack of effort.”
As Newcastle and Howe try to juggle top-flight games with Champions League and Carabao Cup commitments, the Toon boss touched on the Magpies’ busy schedule. He said: “Sometimes with the schedule we have – and I am not using that as an excuse – you can be perceived that way.
“Mentally, you just aren’t there. The surprise was that it came after a week where we tried to rotate the squad.
“That was the puzzling bit for me, some players got a rest and we still looked that way.”
Newcastle go into the trip to Brentford in the bottom half of the table and way off the pace in the battle for a top-five spot. But Howe feels it is too early to make any judgments.
The Newcastle head coach said: “It is (too early). But that is not turning a blind eye to our position in the Premier League table.
“It is a big if, but if we can put together a consistent run together in the Premier League, then very, very quickly we will shoot up that table because it is so tight and congested.
“So I think that is the positive viewpoint. That is the message that we are trying to drill into the players – it is still very much in our hands.
“We have done it before, where we have put together a good, consistent run. We are capable of winning blocks of games.
“Talking about it is one thing, doing it is another. This is a slightly unusual Premier League season because it is very tight.
“The margins are very small between winning and losing.
“We have to increase our chances of winning by getting all the details right.”
Howe goes in against a Keth Andrews side who have beaten Liverpool and Man United at home this season, despite losing Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo. But he is full of praise for the job done by the ex-Republic of Ireland international and said: “He’s done incredibly well.
“To follow Thomas and lose the players that they’ve lost, it’s very difficult to do both of those things and still be successful and look secure. He’s had a very clear plan, a really clear way of playing, and he’s stuck to that.
“And when you add those sorts of things together, you’ve done a really impressive job, and full credit to him and his staff for what they’ve delivered. It’s a very difficult place to go as you’ve seen in their recent results at home, so we know this is going to be a really tough game.”
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