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Newcastle ‘close to our best’ in win over Manchester City – Howe
Eddie Howe had explored every avenue.
The Newcastle United head coach had previously deployed teams that pressed Manchester City high, and others that sat deep. He experimented with diverse formations, all to no avail.
It reached a point where Howe, only half in jest, admitted “we don’t have anything new left” on the eve of Saturday’s match.
Yet, he did.
When Newcastle desperately needed a positive result following a humbling defeat at Brentford before the international break, Howe and his staff devised a strategy to finally overcome Manchester City in the Premier League.
This yielded a 2-1 victory at a vibrant St James’ Park, marking Howe’s first triumph against Pep Guardiola’s side in the top flight after 17 attempts.
“I’ve amassed extensive lists of tactics that have failed against them, enabling me to readily identify what doesn’t work,” Howe stated. “Pinpointing what does is a far shorter list, but we strive to learn from past experiences and implement minor adjustments each time. That’s precisely what we executed.”
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Barnes fires Newcastle to victory against Manchester City
The groundwork was laid in the days following Newcastle’s 3-1 loss at Brentford earlier this month.
Howe dedicated considerable time to analysing footage, reviewing training sessions, and seeking solutions to what had been a perplexing campaign.
Despite working with a smaller training group, Newcastle aimed to rediscover “their energy and athleticism” during the international break.
Several notable adjustments were made for the visit of Manchester City.
Captain Bruno Guimaraes was positioned centrally in the midfield three, a role typically occupied by Sandro Tonali, while returning full-backs Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento made their first joint start since September, significantly impacting the game.
Fabian Schar also made his first Premier League start in two months, replacing centre-back Sven Botman.
However, rather than implementing radical changes, Howe maintained his preferred 4-3-3 system, with two of the three alterations to his starting line-up largely enforced due to injuries to Kieran Trippier and Anthony Gordon.
The majority of the players who featured at Brentford, and indeed in the damaging defeat at West Ham, were given an opportunity to redeem themselves.
“I don’t advocate for wholesale changes,” Howe explained. “Unless one is in a state of absolute panic, which we are not, and I don’t subscribe to that leadership style anyway.
“I believe I have a clear understanding of who our strongest players are, and I want to provide them with every opportunity to showcase their abilities by supporting and developing them.”
Newcastle had only secured one victory in their previous 35 encounters with Manchester City in the Premier League.
A shift was imperative.
Prior to this game, only Wolves and Leeds United, both struggling, had scored fewer goals than Newcastle in the top flight.
Record signing Nick Woltemade had often appeared isolated, receiving limited service, particularly when playing away from home.
While Woltemade was on international duty with Germany, Newcastle focused on refining the movements of players around the forward, such as Barnes and Jacob Murphy, to maximise his impact upon his return.
Newcastle certainly generated opportunities for Woltemade on Saturday, with the Manchester City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma denying him on three occasions.
However, Newcastle’s dependence on Woltemade has lessened as other players have begun to step up.
Notably, Barnes.
The forward admitted to being “not the most popular man” at half-time after missing several clear chances in the first half, including one where he failed to hit the target with the goal at his mercy.
However, Barnes not only opened the scoring with an exquisite strike from the edge of the area in the second half, but he also scored the winning goal just minutes after Manchester City had equalised through Ruben Dias.
Newcastle had previously surrendered leads against Arsenal, Brentford, and West Ham, ultimately losing those matches.
But this time, they did not falter when Manchester City drew level, even after eight minutes of stoppage time were added.
On this occasion, Newcastle won more tackles and aerial duels, and made more blocks than their opponents.
Although Manchester City dominated possession, naturally skewing the statistics, Newcastle demonstrated resilience, making nearly twice as many clearances (36) and restricting the visitors to just four shots on target.
Former Newcastle defender Jonathan Woodgate acknowledged this defensive effort.
“Out of possession, they were exceptional, making it incredibly difficult for City to find those pockets of space between the lines,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“In the second half, I thought they were the superior team, consistently catching City on the counter-attack and ultimately scoring two fantastic goals through Barnes. It was a tremendous game of football.”
Yet, should this result under the lights at St James’ Park truly be considered a significant surprise?
Only Manchester City (13) have won more Premier League home games than Howe’s team (11) in 2025.
Since the beginning of last season, Newcastle have won eight, drawn two, and lost just two of their home fixtures against Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United, and Tottenham in all competitions.
However, Newcastle have not tasted victory in a top-flight away game since April.
This is the reason why the team were only a point above the relegation zone prior to Saturday’s momentous win.
“While I acknowledge that the crowd shouldn’t ideally influence the players on the pitch, it undeniably transforms the atmosphere,” Howe commented.
“We must devise a strategy to replicate some of that positive energy in our away performances, where we lack the support of the home crowd.
“It’s our responsibility to address this, whether through system adjustments or personnel changes. Regardless, we must dedicate ourselves to finding a solution.”
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