Newcastle boss Eddie Howe singles £115k-a-week West Ham star out for praise

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Newcastle United head to West Ham United on Sunday in their final Premier League game before the international break.

Eddie Howe, speaking to the Magpies media team, has singled Hammers midfielder James Ward-Prowse out for praise.

The Newcastle boss says everything in the West Ham summer signing’s repertoire enables the Hammers to be an “obvious threat” from set pieces.

Howe also praised West Ham for all the smart signings they’ve made this summer amid Declan Rice’s departure from the London Stadium.

“They lost Declan Rice who was so important for them,” the Newcastle boss said.

“He was the heartbeat of the team and gave them real stability in the middle of the pitch but I think they’ve replaced him really well.

“It’s always a challenge when you get a big fee for a player and what you do with that money but they’ve been very smart.

“The players that have come in have settled immediately and they’ve done really well this season.

“They’ve had some really tough fixtures as well so the start has been really impressive.

“They’re an obvious threat from set-plays with James Ward Prowse’s delivery and everything that he brings.

“So that’s why, for us, it’s a case of refocussing and not being too distracted or affected any way by the performance on Wednesday.”

West Ham v Newcastle

Newcastle will hope to climb into the top six with victory at West Ham following a tricky start to the Premier League season with four wins and three defeats.

They delivered a performance for the ages in midweek, hammering Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 in the Champions League.

Meanwhile, West Ham are in decent form, with four wins, a draw and two defeats from their opening seven league games.

The Hammers, like Newcastle, won in midweek, defeating Freiburg 2-1 in the Europa League.

Our view

Ward-Prowse has been a revelation for West Ham. He has hit the ground running at the London Stadium, and then some.

He has registered the equivalent of one goal contribution every game this season for West Ham and even in his one Saints game this term.

The Hammers signed him for a reported £30million on a contract said to be worth £115,000-a-week. They’ve pulled off an absolute bargain.