Eddie Howe suggested that his team’s reacquaintance with patience helped Newcastle secure their first win against Sunderland since 2011.
“We were on the right side of the fine balance between patience and trying to score,” he said after Newcastle ended a run of seven defeats in their previous eight games courtesy of two goals from Alexander Isak in a 3-0 victory at the Stadium of Light.
“Recently we maybe haven’t always been on the right side of that balance. But we handled the early stages of the game and the occasion very well. We drew the sting out of it. We didn’t want it to be a transition game, we wanted to control it. Winning meant a hell of a lot to us.”
With Newcastle modifying their trademark aggressive press and concentrating on controlling midfield through Bruno Guimarães, Michael Beale’s fifth game as Sunderland’s manager concluded in a deflating defeat for his young players.
Accordingly, the first Tyne-Wear derby since 2016 proved a thoroughly restorative experience for Howe. “We enjoyed the occasion,” he said. “It was nothing new for us and a normal day in the sense we’ve been playing high‑profile Champions League and Premier League game this season. The atmosphere wasn’t too dissimilar from playing at Milan or Paris Saint-Germain.
“The win means a lot. This fixture is hugely important and the most important thing is our confidence was back. It’s been a frustrating time for us and our injuries are still a big problem, but physically we look stronger. That extra gear was back. And we’ve not just won the game but kept a clean sheet.”
Howe singled out Kieran Trippier, who has been struggling at right-back, for special praise, along with Guimarães and Miguel Almirón. “Kieran was excellent,” he said. “He showed his experience. He made good decisions.”
Sunderland manager Michael Beale, for his part, was sanguine. “Let’s be honest, there was a gap between the two teams, we tried to close it but over 90 minutes we couldn’t,” he said.
“For the first half for the most part we defended OK but we didn’t show enough quality. We talked about being bold at half-time and pushing higher up the pitch but we made the worst possible start to the second half by conceding the second goal. We shot ourselves in the foot straight away.
“Newcastle have beaten PSG this season, they’ve had exposure to and experience of a higher level of football. Their expertise and experience was the difference. It’s a big jump from the Championship to the Premier League.”
The former Rangers manager leavened his disappointment with a sense of medium-term optimism for the second tier’s youngest team. “It’s a horrible feeling now, but it’s nice we’ve got 20 games to go in the Championship and we can be as optimistic as anyone about getting into the playoffs,” he said. “I know our players can do better than they did today.
“Our vision here is to give young players opportunities to develop and grow but if that model was easy everyone would be doing it. Our youth isn’t a problem in the Championship but there was a financial gap and an experience gap with Newcastle we weren’t able to close.”
