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A much-improved performance against Liverpool sees Eddie Howe’s midfield trio of Tonali, Bruno and Joelinton finally starting to gel – and it’s long overdue.
The debate as to whether Bruno Guimarães and Sandro Tonali can fit in the same midfield has been spoken of by Newcastle fans in the same ilk as England fans when the Lampard and Gerrard debate raged on, however following a much-improved performance against league leaders Liverpool on Wednesday night, it appears these questions may finally have been answered.
In a season of what can only be described as “inconsistency” from Eddie Howe’s side, Newcastle have performed below expectations to sit in 10th place after 14 games played, grinding out big results against the likes of Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea but struggling against sides like West Ham, Everton, Fulham, Bournemouth and Brighton.
During the 2022/2023 Champions League qualification campaign, the Magpies had the joint-lowest goals conceded in the Premier League alongside eventual winners Man City (33 or 0.87 per game). Last season they showed their attacking proficiency, scoring 85 goals (2.24 per game) which put them behind only Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool who finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively – however in doing so they conceded nearly twice as many goals (62 or 1.63 per game).
Based on the above, many had thought that this season would be the one where everything clicked for Eddie Howe, especially given the lack of additional European football to worry about plus a much-improved injury situation compared to last year. However, Newcastle continue to remain an inconsistent entity in terms of their on-pitch performances and results, conceding 1.2 goals per game but only scoring 1.2 goals in return – the 5th worst in the division for goals scored after 14 games played.
Stat | 22/23 | 23/24 | 24/25 (to date) |
Goals Scored per game | 1.79 ↗ | 2.24 ↗ | 1.21 ↘ |
Goals Conceded per game | 0.87 ↘ | 1.63 ↗ | 1.21 ↘ |
Big Chances Created per game | 1.89 ↗ | 2.19 ↗ | 1.57 ↘ |
Newcastle Utd – Season on Season Comparison
So where are things going wrong? While of course it can be argued that several key players have been somewhat under-firing given that the likes of Isak, Gordon and Wilson scored over 40 goals combined last season, and as we approach the halfway point of this season that figure stands at 8 currently. But if we are looking at consistency in terms of goals both scored and conceded, and in particular looking at Eddie Howe’s 4-3-3 system – the midfield is arguably the most essential component within this setup, and looking back on Newcastle’s current form to date it’s clear that there have been issues in terms of balance, fluidity, role understanding and a general sense of under-performance and under-achievement for such a talented cohort of players.
Midfield Combo | Games Started | Points Won | Points per game |
Bruno, Longstaff, Joelinton | 4 | 10/12 | 2.5 |
Bruno, Tonali, Joelinton | 5 | 6/15 | 1.2 |
Bruno, Longstaff, Willock | 3 | 6/9 | 2 |
Bruno, Tonali, Willock | 1 | 1/3 | 1 |
Bruno, Willock, Joelinton | 1 | 0/3 | 0 |
Midfield combinations used so far this season
As per the above table – Eddie Howe has used 5 different starting midfield trios in 14 league games this season, which when you consider that all players have largely been fit and available (Tonali’s suspension for the opening three games the only significant “enforced” absence) is a sure sign that Howe is still trying to lock down his best midfield combination and that the consistent chopping and changing has been somewhat detrimental to Newcastle’s performances that season.
That said – since Tonali has been put into the #6 role (i.e. operating as a holding midfielder) in their previous two league fixtures, it has already started to yield improvement in terms of structure, definition, fluidity and most importantly allowing the likes of Bruno and Joelinton to get further forward – something both had previously tended to do regardless of protection, but now with Tonali instructed to cover it gives a more “planned” creative freedom and license to roam for his midfield colleagues.
Newcastle’s recent 3-3 draw against Liverpool was a prime example of this; Tonali sitting as the holding midfielder allowed Bruno to break forward and gave Joelinton the freedom to roam from box-to-box – a game that saw Newcastle have 6 shots on target and create 3 clear-cut chances. By contrast – across their previous two games they only managed 1 clear-cut chance and 2 shots on target.
This more structured approach facilitated Bruno in getting two assists, setting up both of Newcastle’s opening goals in open play, while Joelinton’s freedom to move from box-to-box gave him the highest number of ball recoveries of any outfield player on the pitch (10).
“We’re seeing Bruno in a different position, and I thought he played well. Sandro has been excellent in the last two games as a six, and there’s real competition for places. But it’s three outstanding players we need to get the best of.” Eddie Howe speaking after Newcastle’s 3-3 draw at home to Liverpool.
Early days of course, and one game in isolation is only ever that – however this impressive performance against a side who in a week have comfortably overcome League Champions Man City and Champions League winners Real Madrid may just turn out to be a sign of things to come for Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United.
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