Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has questioned whether the strong wind and cold at the Gtech Stadium may have hindered his team’s attacking play in the second half as they were beaten 4-2 by Brentford. The Magpies had
twice conceded goals before Alexander Isak and Harvey Barnes equalised in the first half but failed to recover in the second half. Asked after the game, Howe was asked: “It
was obviously very windy today. Maybe that affected the game. It’s just a coincidence, but in the second half we weren’t as good offensively as we used to be.” The Englishman replied :
“I don’t know if the weather was a factor. I don’t want to make excuses. I’m just trying to answer the question because today both teams were better at the other end of the pitch. “
We had moments in front of the opponent’s penalty area in the second half so it wasn’t all bad, but it wasn’t as sharp as in the first half when we had some good moments
in attack. Key players like Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali were substitutes and didn’t do much to change things up. Howe also thought the stormy weather in England had an impact:
“I think the conditions made it a difficult game for the guys we brought on. They have got to figure out the rhythm of the game and it’s natural to feel a little bit cold.
“Anthony Gordon looked outstanding when he came on, I had no problem with him. Midfield is where we were not as strong in the second half.”
Newcastle drew 3-3 at home to leaders Liverpool earlier in the day but are winless in their last four games. And Howe expressed his frustration:
“I was disappointed and frustrated with the goal we conceded today. ทางเข้า ufabet We controlled the game in the first half but it slipped away after the third goal.
“Overall in the last four games we were not good enough, our performances were inconsistent, a lot of people were tired. The Liverpool game probably drained a lot of our energy. “
I would have liked to have rotated more but I couldn’t because some of the players on the bench are not fit enough to start in the Premier League.”