West Ham 3-1 Newcastle United: Joe Buck reaction
Newcastle United latest news: Alan Shearer has labelled Newcastle United’s performance as ‘terrible’ as they fell to a 3-1 defeat at the London Stadium.
Eddie Howe’s side took an early lead, but goals from Lucas Paqueta, an own goal by Sven Botman and a late Tomas Soucek strike ensured a first win as Hammers boss for Nuno Espirito Santo. The Magpies haven’t won away in the Premier League since April and, despite having won three on the spin heading into Sunday’s game, put in a flat performance in the capital to ensure they remained in the bottom half of the table as the weekend came to a close.
It was a disastrous day for Howe and one that peaked at 2:04pm before going downhill, fast. Speaking post-match, Howe revealed that some ‘honest’ words were said in the dressing room at half-time ahead of a triple change at the break.
“I'm always very honest with the players,” Howe said. “I believe in honesty, whether that's positive or negative.
“So I was very honest and I always try to be fair. And yeah, now the key thing will be everyone's reaction.
“I felt the opportunity there was for us, it was there for us to kick on and to grab that game, especially after the goal [from Murphy]. But we didn't do that.”
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That triple change, though, had little effect in the second period.
Alan Shearer launches fresh Newcastle United criticism v West Ham
Ever one to voice his opinion on his former side, Alan Shearer labelled the Magpies as ‘awful’ and ‘lazy’ in posts on X during the game. Having had some time to dissect and reflect on the game, Shearer then expanded his views on the Rest is Football podcast.
However, that reflection time didn’t soften the Premier League’s all-time record scorer’s view on Newcastle United’s performance at the London Stadium: “Seriously, how bad were Newcastle? They were rotten,” Shearer said.
“They were awful. It’s as bad as I can remember under Eddie Howe for a long time.
“It was so bad. They were lazy, they were lethargic, they had no energy.
“Other than maybe Murphy, who scored the goal, there was not one player that could come off that pitch and say, ‘I did alright today’. They were terrible.
“Every single one of them, from the goalkeeper to the centre forward, right the way through, they were awful and got what they deserved. West Ham were the best team by a mile.”
Newcastle United return to the home comforts of St James’ Park on Wednesday night when they face Athletic Club in the Champions League. A win would move them onto nine points from four matches in that competition and put them on the verge of a points total that many experts believe will be enough to secure qualification to the knockout stages.
However, a return to the capital and a trip to face Brentford awaits after that on Sunday and another chance, albeit a very difficult one, to end their disastrous record on the road in the league.
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