Eddie Howe hails Newcastle United's performance against Barcelona as 'one of our best' despite late sucker punch
Newcastle United. Champions League. Last-minute penalty that denies a win. It's all a bit too familiar, isn't it?
If it weren't for bad luck, Newcastle would have no luck at all, it seems. Also, if it weren't for poor referees, Newcastle would have no referees at all.
Newcastle were up against it with another seemingly biased referee, so the fact that we managed to dominate the game, and really should have been a couple of goals to the good, is a testament to just how good we were last night.
The last-minute penalty was devastating and really changed the mood at full-time, but really, there was so much to be pleased about last night, and we're still very much in this tie.
Eddie Howe says his Newcastle side were 'outstanding' for 93 minutes last night
Eddie Howe was certainly very proud of his lads, and he had every right to be, as he told Amazon Prime Video at full time that he thought Newcastle were 'outstanding', before going on to call Barcelona's goal 'soft'.
"I thought we were outstanding, a really, really good performance. We kept the intensity up. The moment at the end takes that in a negative light but one of our best performances. I thought we had enough to score before we did. The game showed we are capable but we know we probably have to give more going to their stadium. We are capable of doing it but we will need to be at our very best."
"I think it is soft [the penalty] but Malik (Thiaw) makes contact. We had our shape, there's no way we should concede that goal. We will look at it but I don't want it override the 93 minutes before that in which we were quality. It is my job to try and pick them up. We have unfortunately had to do that a few times this seasons but our strength of character should never be in doubt. We will be ready by the time the next game comes round. We believe in ourselves and our capability and we have shown that today."
Barcelona's confidence could be their undoing next week
Next week at the Nou Camp, it will likely be a very different game as Barcelona will likely try to turn on the style in front of their home crowd.
However, that could benefit Newcastle. Our strength last night was our pace behind the back line as they pushed up the field. They're likely to be even more confident in their attacking at home, which should leave us plenty of space in behind to exploit.
What we do need, though, is someone who can finish. I thought Will Osula and Anthony Elanga were brilliant last night, right up until their final action. That's the bit that needs work. If we can nail that, we'll be laughing.
