Newcastle boss Eddie Howe must start £38m hero as crucial stats show where he’s going wrong

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Newcastle United have begun their campaign in mixed fashion in the Premier League and it could be time for a change on Tyneside.

Whilst the Magpies have improved in recent weeks, a failure to see games out has punished Eddie Howe, especially at home with last-gasp defeats to title-chasing duo Arsenal and Liverpool.

Stoppage-time winners for away sides have been a recurring theme at St. James’ Park this season, including Gabriel’s last-minute header for Arsenal against Newcastle recently.

Naturally, their defence takes the flak for conceding, but Newcastle’s failure to create chances and profit before the end of the game has been a problem for Howe.

And one star who could provide that opportunity is Harvey Barnes, who has largely struggled for starts since his move.

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Harvey Barnes must give Eddie Howe a Newcastle selection headache amid lack of chances

Barnes joined Newcastle two years ago from Leicester City for £38million, though with Anthony Gordon landing at the club six months prior, the two have been battling it out for minutes.

Gordon burst onto the scene at St. James’ Park in that time, which made Barnes’ life difficult to start with.

To add to his dismay, a foot injury not long after joining Newcastle meant the 27-year-old started just three league games from the opening 30 in the 2023-24 season.

In the long run, that has generally seen him struggle to find his way back into the team.

However, Barnes did feature prominently towards the end of last season, registering four goals and four assists in just six Premier League games.

The left-winger has a clinical edge that Anthony Elanga and Anthony Gordon don’t, and with the Magpies’ recent struggles, it would be best to go with the Englishman to combat their inability to clinch games.

Although Newcastle spent £55million on Elanga in the summer, it could be time to drop the Swede.

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Harvey Barnes could push Anthony Elanga to Newcastle’s bench to combat goalscoring woes

Elanga enjoyed the form of his life for Nottingham Forest last season, prompting a move to Tyneside.

This season hasn’t been as good, with just one assist in six starts in all competitions, whilst Anthony Gordon has yet to score in the league amid a needless red card vs Liverpool.

Gordon’s continued form for Newcastle down the years means he is undroppable at present, as is Nick Woltemade, who has begun his Magpies career strongly.

However, Elanga failing to produce in the final third means that Gordon could be switched to the right to utilise his pace, with Barnes providing a scoring threat off his favoured left wing.

Interestingly, FBREF states that Barnes has accrued more expected goals (xG), more expected assists (xA), the same amount of progressive carries and over double the amount of progressive passes than Elanga – yet crucially, Elanga has 33% more in terms of progressive passes received than Barnes.

Essentially, Barnes is doing more with the ball, despite having less of it.

Newcastle have failed to score against Leeds, Bournemouth and Aston Villa away from home. Those draws turning into wins would have propelled them into the top two, regardless of their defeats to Arsenal and Liverpool, and Barnes’ clinical nature over the years could have made the difference.