Howe was asked about the importance of Nick Pope in spite of his ability to play with the ball at his feet
Sean McCormick is a football writer covering Newcastle United for ChronicleLive. After starting his career covering North East sport, he has had a spell working as an editor on the Manchester Evening News. He also writes about darts and boxing. He joined us in 2016.
Newcastle United's Nick Pope is mobbed by teammates after he assisted Harvey Barnes for the second goal against Benfica
Newcastle United's Nick Pope is mobbed by teammates after he assisted Harvey Barnes for the second goal against Benfica
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Newcastle United goalkeeper Nick Pope has been in the headlines for all the right reasons this week.
When you launch a throw 65 yards to create a decisive goal in a Champions League win that has drawn comparisons to famous NFL quarterbacks, it is hardly a surprise.
But Pope remains a curious case when it comes to how he is perceived - both by Newcastle fans and a wider football audience.
What has been absolutely clear since his £12million arrival from Burnley in the summer of 2022, is that in terms of the fundamentals of being a good goalkeeper, there are few better than him in the Premier League.
His ability to make difficult saves look routine and his command of the penalty area is second to none. No other goalkeeper has more clean sheets than him in the Premier League this season, too, and if you keep clean sheets you can't lose games.
But all of that often gets put aside because of his striking difficulty to play with the ball at his feet. For all of his good work against Benfica - he made two excellent saves off Belgian winger Dodi Lukebakio - his panicked decision to kick the ball out of play for a corner after receiving a pass back drew some derisory groans from the St James' Park crowd.
He was arguably player of the match against Arsenal last month but a poor piece of distribution in stoppage time led to the corner that gave away the goal that ultimately cost the Magpies a point.
The debate with Pope, no matter how good he is at keeping the ball out of the net (and let's not forget that is the No 1 priority for any goalkeeper), always comes back to his lack of ability with his feet. It is perhaps why, despite his good form, he still hasn't earned a recall to the England squad yet this season.
It is an obsession in modern football to have a goalkeeper who can do both and, in an ideal world, Newcastle would like one. The problem is it is very hard to find one and you can quite easily end up with a goalkeeper who can start to build attacks but isn't very good at preventing goals.
And in that search, it could quite easily get lost just how good of a goalkeeper Pope is.
"It's a good question because it can be taken for granted," Howe told reporters when asked if his actual goalkeeping ability is underestimated.
"The two saves he made the other night, both were outstanding saves at a big moment. 0-0 in the game and if you go a goal behind, it doesn't mean you can't win but it makes it so much harder. The first one in particular, which was slightly unorthodox because it's sort of gone under his arm but he's found a way to keep it out."
"That's always been Nick's biggest strength, he finds a way, most of the time, percentage-wise, to keep the ball out of the net. He's got that unique gift. He's obviously got long limbs and a big frame, but he uses it to the best of his ability and the best of his advantage to make big saves."I go back to the cup final, the save he made when we were 2-0 up and there was still a big chunk of the game left. He sticks out a big hand and it was a massive save for us.
"Yes, goals always get the full coverage, and I understand that, and rightly so. Goalkeepers really only come to light if they make an absolute worldy save or they make a mistake. But Nick's had a habit of continually making very, very good saves, and he's very valuable to us."
It was revealed before the Benfica win that Pope has been voted into the club's leadership group and it was clear to see how valued he is by his team-mates by their reaction to his assist on Tuesday night. It is a quality that can often go unseen but his impact on the dressing room in his time at Newcastle has arguably been just as important as the impact he has made between the posts.
"I think that's a very good sign for him," Howe added when asked about his team-mates celebrating with Pope against Benfica. "He's got the full respect of the dressing room. He's consistent. He's a consistent person. He's the same every day. Very positive. But he's got this desire to learn still.
"He trains really, really well. He's got a good relationship with the goalkeepers around him and his coaches. And he's very vocal.
"If you were to walk into our changing room before a game, he'll be one that will be leading the encouragement of the outfield players. So those things are really valuable to us."
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