Eddie Howe launches stinging criticism of Newcastle stars in warning after West Ham defeat

View 2 Images

Eddie Howe slammed his ‘unrecognisable’ team vs West Ham, claiming he could have substituted EVERYONE. The Magpies slipped to their fourth league defeat of the campaign on Sunday at the London Stadium.

Howe ’s side had actually enjoyed a dream start through Jacob Murphy, only for Lucas Paqueta’s fine strike to haul West Ham level. Sven Botman’s own-goal just before half-time flipped the game on its head, while Tomas Soucek rounded off the scoring late on.

Howe was understandably furious at the final whistle and claimed that he did not recognise the players on the pitch. He said: “The dynamism wasn't there.

“The physicality and the energy were missing. We scored early and could have grabbed hold of the game but we didn’t and let it slip away.

“It didn't look like a Newcastle team that we've seen in recent seasons. The body language, the collective spirit on the pitch, loads of little things weren’t there. It was a by-product of us just not being where we needed to be mentally.”

Meanwhile, Howe also claimed that could have substituted any one of the players on the pitch. He added: “I could have taken anyone off.

“That is a reflection of where we were at that stage of the game. It is very rare for me to feel that way. I don't think I have since I have been Newcastle manager.”

Newcastle’s latest defeat leaves them 13th in the Premier League table on just 12 points from ten games. They will be aiming to get back to winning ways on Wednesday as they take on Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League ahead of an away trip to Brentford.

Howe was not the only one left uninspired by Newcastle’s performance. Gary Neville also claimed that the players let their manager down with their displays.

View 2 Images

What went wrong for Newcastle vs West Ham? Share your thoughts in the comments below

He said: “They made me really angry. I think probably in the last 20 minutes of that first half, but certainly in that second half, they didn’t have a shot for a long time in the game.

“I thought they really let the manager down, who is fantastic. A manager who has got a great record, but they’ve got a lot of work to do.

“The actual gap between the top and the bottom is big in some ways but if you drop your effort and you drop your actual intensity, you’re going to get found out very quickly in this league.

“And they’ve been found out today like you wouldn’t believe, Newcastle. I thought they were lethargic, leggy and I thought their attitude was really poor to that game.”

Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.