Eddie Howe explained why his big money signings can't get a start despite the season in danger of slipping away
Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa
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Eddie Howe has defended his decision to leave £124million worth of striking talent on the bench for Newcastle United's critical game at Crystal Palace.
The Magpies needed three points to keep their dream of Europe alive but were beaten 2-1 by the Eagles. Woltemade and Wissa had to wait until the dying stages for an opportunity to impress but by that time Newcastle had lost any attacking fluency.
Howe was asked why the pair were overlooked for such an important match but he countered that he does not select players based on transfer value. The Magpies manager opted to start William Osula for the game and the Danish forward opened the scoring in the first half.
Howe told Chronicle Live: "I don't pick the team based on transfer fees, I have to pick the team based on what I see, I thought Will Osula trained well and deserved to start.
"Will played well. He was a real positive coming out of the game. He took his goal well and he has the physical attributes and determination. He is improving week in week out. I was delighted with his performance."
The defeat was the third in a row for Newcastle, following on from the Barcelona and Sunderland disasters. It leaves Newcastle in 14th spot in the Premier League standings.
When asked whether it should be collective responsibility for the defeat or he should shoulder the blame himself, Howe said: "Always. I always look at myself first. I always say I am No 1 accountable.
"I thought the tactical set-up was good, we were leading the game, for the away team we were in a good position, we played some good football. But individually, we did not do our jobs well enough in those moments in the second half.
"Mateta made a difference his phsyicality, I don't think we dealt with him well enough, the game got away from us in the latter stages. Still we should have came away with a point which I know isn't what we came here for, we came here to win.
"I never shy away from taking accountability and responsibility. I always do and I always will."
The defeat meant that Newcastle have now thrown away an incredible 25 points from winning positions.
Howe, speaking in the aftermath of the defeat at Palace, said: "Those numbers are incredible really. It has blighted our season, the fact that we haven't been able to, not just consolidate passages of games but go on and score more goals and continue to attack.
"I have said many times that is not the tactical instruction we give the players. We don't want to go 1-0 up and change to a mentality of defending but we have done it, so I can't say it hasn't happened.
"But if you are going to defend, you have to defend better than we did. It was a game of few chances, but we still looked vulnerable towards the end. That is hugely disappointing."
Asked if his side have gone from being a team capable of delivering the dark arts to a team that look soft, Howe added: "I don't know. It is an easy one to label. I don't think it went late enough in the game for that (dark arts) to function. I think the first goal we conceded is self inflicted, and not good enough through minimal threat in my opinion. The second goal is from an error with very little time left, there is no way we should have lost that game.
"We had a younger team today but that is no excuse. There are enough experienced internationals to navigate the defensive aspect well enough.
"We have not defended well enough since the turn of the year. Our numbers conceded has been uncharacteristic for us. It is something we focused on and will have to continue to do."