Newcastle United fans had basically nothing to celebrate against Crystal Palace on Wednesday night, but Eddie Howe believes there was at least one positive to take from the trip down south.
His side suffered their 10th away defeat in the Premier League this season, losing 2-0 to Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. It was a bad result, and an alarming performance.
The Magpies were well off the pace against Crystal Palace, and got everything they deserved out of the game – absolutely nothing.
It was a strange tactical performance from Newcastle United, who used the same system that served them so well versus Tottenham Hotspur. But the 3-4-3 did not seem fit for purpose on Wednesday, and it resulted in Newcastle failing in pretty much every department.
There was one reason for Newcastle United fans to be positive after Crystal Palace defeat
There was not much for Toon fans to celebrate against Crystal Palace.
Anthony Gordon and Alexander Isak failed to continue their incredible form, while Harvey Barnes was very quiet. After that front three did so well against Spurs, this was a really disappointing night for the trio.
Elsewhere, the likes of Sean Longstaff, Jacob Murphy and Emil Krafth failed to do their long-term Toon aspirations any favours.
In fact, the only Newcastle United player who can really come out of the game with any credit is Bruno Guimaraes. He was undoubtedly our best player, although it was not as if he had much competition.
His performance was decent, but the main positive coming out of the game for Eddie Howe was the return of Callum Wilson.
The 32-year-old trained well in the buildup, and was deemed fit enough for a place on the bench after missing 10 games. Wilson came on in the second half in the 65th minute, but was unable to inspire a comeback.
What Eddie Howe has said about Callum Wilson’s return
Howe was happy with what he saw from Wilson, and spoke to the Northern Echo about the Newcastle number nine’s return.
“He’s huge,” he said.
“He’s a big player for us. To have that option from the bench was a rare luxury for me really, to have a striker who can come on and make a difference.
“I think he did, I think he improved our performance and did well. He looked fresh and strong, and he’s come through with no problems so that’s a big positive for us.”
Eddie Howe suddenly has another option up front
The main thing for Wilson was that he got through the game unscathed. He has been a big miss, with Eddie Howe unable to rotate his strikers.
Now he has two great goalscorers available, and Wilson will be eager to reinforce that he is exactly that during the Magpies’ final five games of the season.
And he has got multiple reasons as to why he needs to impress.
Three reasons why Wilson must impress in Newcastle’s final five games
Firstly, he is fighting for his Newcastle United career, even if Howe has suggested that it might be a mistake to let him go given how much a replacement would cost.
Secondly, Wilson will still have ambitions of going to the Euros this summer with England. It feels incredibly unlikely that he will be included in Gareth Southgate’s squad, but he will certainly give himself a chance if he scores a few goals between now and the end of the 2023/24 campaign.
And thirdly, he will want to close the gap on Alexander Isak. The 24-year-old is Newcastle’s top scorer this season, finding the net 21 times in all competitions. He is 13 goals clear of Wilson, who has got eight from his 23 appearances.
Wilson will not appreciate being so far behind, and will be delighted to be fit once more so that he has the chance to get on the scoresheet again. Here’s hoping he does just that.
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