Newcastle boss Eddie Howe dismisses critics of his side after Alan Shearer said they were ‘all over the place’ in defeat by Brighton… as he claims he’s ‘immune’ to their opinions
- Newcastle manager Eddie Howe has insisted he is immune to criticism
- Club legend Alan Shearer was heavily critical after Newcastle’s loss to Brighton
- Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast It’s All Kicking Off!
Eddie Howe has sent a strong message to any would-be critics, insisting he is ‘immune’ to their opinions and does not need anyone to tell him if he or his Newcastle team have underperformed.
The Magpies have lost their last three matches and supporters and pundits were especially critical following the most recent 3-1 defeat at Brighton.
Club legend Alan Shearer said: ‘Other than Callum Wilson, Newcastle were very poor in every department. A tough start to the season I know, but they were all over place.’
There was a general feeling of it being the worst performance of Howe’s tenure, although the head coach has plenty of goodwill in the bank and takes his side to Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday.
However, there has been a lot of noise around Newcastle on the back of a difficult start to the campaign, and Howe was asked about that ahead of Saturday’s visit of Brentford.
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has insisted that he is immune to criticism of the club
Club legend Alan Shearer was among those to criticise Newcastle after their loss to Brighton
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‘I’m immune to it, so I’m not hearing it,’ he said. ‘I’m only feeling my emotions to be honest – and my emotions are such that when we don’t win, I’m not great to be around. That is my drive.
‘I don’t need anyone else to tell me anything, really, about the team. My drive is so high. My standards are so high that I expect to win every game and I want to win every game. If we don’t, I’m disappointed in myself, so I don’t need anyone else to tell me anything.’
It was a strong response on the subject of perceived criticism, and he added: ‘I’m criticising myself. I don’t listen to other people criticising me, so I’m immune to that.’
Newcastle have gone from second bottom to fourth-placed finish under Howe’s management and he was rewarded with an improved long-term contract at the start of last season.
They are currently 14th after the losses to Manchester City, Liverpool and Brighton, but Howe said: ‘You do need to be calm and try to make the correct decisions, that you see things for what they are, not what people try to create.
‘That’s why I keep labouring the point, it hasn’t all been bad. Yes, results in the last three games haven’t been what we want, but there have been some really good bits in the performances which we cannot lose.
‘If you do that, then you are starting again from zero. We’ve built the team to a point where we have been consistent last year and throughout the season. Although there were some dips along the way, we stayed strong and we are going to have to show that again this year. The challenge this year is totally different to last, so hopefully we can show the qualities we need to come back.’
Newcastle impressed last season but have already lost three league games this campaign
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