After Newcastle United overtook Manchester United in third place in the Premier League, Eddie Howe has hit back at Erik ten Hag’s ‘nonsense’ time-wasting claims.
Additionally, the win allowed a measure of retaliation for Newcastle’s loss by the same margin in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley in February.
Ten Hag had previously referred to Howe’s team as ‘annoying’ and accused them of deliberately running the clock down in the sides’ goalless stalemate at Old Trafford back in October.
Newcastle’s official Twitter account even got in on the act during Sunday’s win, tweeting ‘no time-wasting required’ as the game ended, before describing Allan Saint-Maximin as ‘annoying’ to play against.
No time-wasting required… 😏
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) April 2, 2023
And Howe said afterwards: ‘I want to make one thing very clear – we want the ball in play. We want a quick game.
I don’t get where this time-wasting nonsense has come from, because it’s not us and you saw today.
‘We wanted the ball back in play as quickly as possible. High energy, high tempo.’
Trending Stories: Man United Hold Talks To Sign £26 Million Star
Howe added: ‘I’ll always stand up for my team. I’ll always stand up for what I believe is right, and that’s what I’ll always do. I think if something’s not accurate, then naturally you want to put the right point across.
‘But we fully deserved the win. We showed real belief. Today is a blueprint for how we want the team to play, in almost every phase.’
The win was a major boost for Newcastle’s hopes of a top four finish as they moved above Man United on goal difference.
However, Tottenham can move above them both – and push Ten Hag’s team down to fifth – if they beat Everton on Monday night.
COMMENTS