His side are going well in the Champions League and into the last eight of the Carabao Cup, but the Magpies are just two points above the relegation zone after a poor start to the Premier League season.
So why the inconsistency in the league? Why are Newcastle struggling so much away from home? What would make this season successful? And should Howe's role be questioned given the league form?
Scott Wilson and Dominic Shaw discuss:
**How would you assess Newcastle's start to the season?**
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**SW:** Mixed - and with an obvious disparity between performances and results in the cup competitions as opposed to the Premier League. Newcastle's Champions League performances have been excellent - even the defeat to Barcelona saw Eddie Howe's side play reasonably well - and next month's Carabao Cup quarter-final against Fulham offers a good chance of making the last four. Newcastle's league form has been nowhere near what is required though, particularly away from home. The Magpies are just two points off the relegation zone, with Manchester City up next. Clearly, a major improvement is needed.
**DS:** Incredibly inconsistent. We've seen the very best of Newcastle and the very worst. They have a great opportunity to reach the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup and the knockout stages of the Champions League, but their Premier League start has been extremely disappointing and the displays at West Ham and Brentford worrying. It didn't look like an Eddie Howe [Newcastle United](http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/football/newcastle?ref=au) team in those losses in the capital. Howe has warned this season that it's dangerous to prioritise games and competitions. Competing in the cups is great but it needs to run alongside a strong league campaign.
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What's going wrong for Newcastle away from home?
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**SW:** Lots of things, but the main worry is the way in which Newcastle have been completely unable to control matches away from home. At St James' Park, their energetic, front-foot approach enables them to smother opposition teams, but that hasn't been working away from Tyneside. How can Newcastle dictate matches when they're not dominating possession? How can they turn the course of a game that is going against them? Howe's preferred set-up hasn't been working away from home - that suggests he needs to change tactics or personnel, or quite possibly both.
**DS:** In the past, Howe has talked about his desire for Newcastle to look and play the same home and away. That hasn't been the case at all this season. They've lacked intensity on the road and, as Scott says, have lacked control in games. Howe's first choice midfield three isn't working away from home and Nick Woltemade has had to feed on scraps.
What changes can and should Eddie Howe make?
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**SW:** Personnel wise, he has options. Is it time for Nick Pope to make way for Aaron Ramsdale? Probably. Does Lewis Hall need to come in for Dan Burn at left-back? Yes. Sticking with Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton as a midfield three isn't working, with the latter in particularly poor form. And Nick Woltemade clearly needs to either move away from being a 'number nine' or get some extra attacking support. Might a change of formation work? Once Hall and Tino Livramento are both back, playing with five at the back might make Newcastle more defensively secure away from home as well as increasing their attacking threat on the flank. And once Yoane Wissa is available, a 5-3-2 formation might enable Wissa and Woltemade to dovetail in attack.
**DS**: Howe is obviously ruthless when he needs to be and it feels like now is the time to mix it up in midfield. And when Lewis Hall is deemed fully fit again, he has to come back into the side at left-back. That then gives Howe a difficult decision to make on Dan Burn. Does he leave him out or move to a back three? The latter, as Scott says, could work, and would mean Woltemade has such much-needed support in attack. But what do you then do with the wingers?
What is a realistic target for Newcastle now this season? And what would make a successful season?
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**SW:** In terms of the Premier League, it already feels as though a top-four finish will be extremely difficult to achieve. Qualifying for the Europa League or Conference League via the league table should still be manageable though, and would represent a reasonable return after an extremely difficult summer. The cup competitions offer the best chance of glory, and will understandably be a major focus. Finishing in the top eight of the Champions League league phase would be a massive achievement, but even securing a play-off place would set up two massive knockout games for the spring. The Carabao Cup feels winnable, while if the draw is a kind, a deep run in the FA Cup should also be a realistic ambition.
**DS:** Newcastle have every chance of reaching the last four of the Carabao Cup, but those semi-finals look likely to be stacked with quality. And the Magpies have given themselves a glorious chance of reaching the knockout stages of the Champions League. But if Newcastle are to take the next step as a club, they need to be playing in the Champions League every season, and qualifying to take on Europe's elite next term already looks a long shot after such a slow start to the Premier League season.
Qualifying for the Europa League or Conference League would surely only be deemed a successful season if the Magpies can also manage to win one of the domestic cups.
Should Eddie Howe's position as head coach be questioned?
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**SW**: No. It's a simple answer, but Howe's achievements over the course of his Tyneside tenure mean he has accrued far too much credit in the bank for his position to be questioned just because of a few below-par Premier League performances. All the indications are that the Newcastle hierarchy retain complete faith in Howe and back him wholeheartedly to turn things around. That said, however, it is not completely inconceivable that the Magpies get dragged into a full-blown relegation battle. If that was to happen, major questions would have to be asked of pretty much everyone at the club.
**DS:** Absolutely not. Howe has done an outstanding job over the course of the last four years and his job should be one of the safest in the Premier League. Not only has the 47-year-old led the Magpies to Carabao Cup glory and two seasons in the Champions League, he's done so while United have had to battle hard to ensure they don't stray the wrong side of the PSR line, meaning a number of transfer windows have passed without the squad being strengthened. And Howe can hardly be blamed for the Alexander Isak mess in the summer, which has obviously had an impact on the start to the season.