Halloween might now be over for another year, but that didn’t stop Newcastle United from showing their Jekyll and Hyde tendencies away at West Ham United on Sunday afternoon.
Heading into this tie against Nuno Espirito Santo’s dejected hosts, Newcastle had collected three wins from their last three games in all competitions.
But, regardless of this run of wins, their poor away record in the Premier League this season continued on at the London Stadium, as Nuno was gifted his first Hammers victory as manager, off the back of the Toon collapsing to a 3-1 loss.
Of course, West Ham did have some genuine moments of quality to thank for their much-needed win, as Lucas Paqueta smashed home this sweetly struck equaliser late into the first half.
Yet, they were definitely boosted by a charitable defensive showing throughout from the away side, too, with Nick Pope perhaps wishing he had done better with this opener, in hindsight.
Newcastle’s worrying defensive display
Newcastle would have been the definite favourites for this tie during the pre-match build-up, with West Ham going 247 days without a home victory heading into their showdown with Eddie Howe and Co.
Football is very rarely played to the script, though, with the Newcastle defence that looked rock-solid mid-week when comfortably beating Tottenham Hotspur, replaced by a shoddy, error-prone backline at the London Stadium.
It was the exact same defence, too, minus Sven Botman coming back into the first team mix ahead of Fabian Schar. Howe would have very much regretted making this call in first-half stoppage time, when Botman inexplicably placed a cross from Aaron Wan-Bissaka, past his own goalkeeper, to hand West Ham a slim 2-1 advantage.
The Dutchman wasn’t alone in having an off-day at the back, though, with Emil Krafth hooked off at the half-time mark after he had managed to win zero duels or zero tackles, as Howe desperately wished he had Kieran Trippier available in his spot, instead.
Aaron Ramsdale will also feel he’s in with a slight shout to usurp Pope in between the sticks after a clean sheet was picked up by the ex-Arsenal ‘keeper versus Spurs, with the former Burnley stopper an unsteady pair of gloves, again, when he spilt a late effort into Tomas Soucek’s path to tie up the win for the hosts.
He does have some credit in the bank, though, having kept an impressive five clean sheets in the Premier League so far this season, away from his error-strewn showing on Sunday.
Whereas, one of his other teammates defensively remains on a very precarious tight-rope when it comes to being selected in the starting XI, after a campaign full of disastrous performances.
Howe must drop 3/10 Newcastle star
Howe really did experiment with his XI in East London, as the likes of William Osula, Jacob Ramsey, and Anthony Elanga were all thrown into the first-team action at some point during the chaotic clash.
The 47-year-old’s widespread tinkering did very little to turn the game on its head, though, as Dan Burn struggled throughout as a left-back once more.
Burn’s Newcastle numbers by position
Position
Games played
Goals + Assists
CB
82
2 + 2
LB
78
6 + 2
Sourced by Transfermarkt
In the past, the 6-foot-7 giant has excelled in the left-back spot, as seen in his collecting six goals when selected on the left-hand side from 78 appearances and counting.
But, in the here and now, it’s clear that the ageing number 33 is no longer well suited to a full-back role, with one Newcastle-based content creator’s comments earlier in the season that Burn being selected regularly here is the “stuff of nightmares” very much ringing true against Nuno’s spirited hosts.
Indeed, the Blyth-born defender would offer very little to Howe and Co’s cause in the forward areas, with zero dribbles attempted.
On top of that, Burn would also fail to win a single tackle or a single ground duel during the 3-1 defeat, leading to Newcastle World’s Jordan Cronin handing him a disappointing 3/10 score post-match.
It’s surely the correct time, now, for Lewis Hall to gain more first-team experience in the left-back spot, over Burn, who is showing no signs, as of late, that he’s cut out for this demanding position long term.
Hall was back on the bench, too, at the London Stadium, after a lengthy absence out of the first team fold through injury, as Howe now contemplates ditching his long-standing servant for the promising youngster, as Champions League football returns to St James’ Park mid-week.
