The club's supporters have been eagerly waiting for the January transfer window to open and debating who the club will bring in. Eddie Howe may have wanted the chance to reinforce his squad.
The situation is dire for Newcastle, after all. They have just 11 points from their first 19 games in the league, which is their worst ever start to a season. Fourteen of the 15 teams that have recorded just this many points or fewer at this point in the season have been demoted.
January is a crucial period for the club. They have an opportunity to address their weaknesses and find some inspiration to reignite their survival bid.
Fourteen of the 15 teams with the lowest points total have gone down.
Which areas need to be addressed? Howe could look to make improvements if he looked at the defensive and attack statistics.
Goalkeeper.
The three goalkeepers from the club have the worst save percentages.
Three goalkeepers have been used this season. The three players have the worst save percentages in the league.
It's not good reading for the goalkeeping department at St James' Park and the form of Nick Pope, who has recorded the 11th-best save percentage, shows there is room for improvement.
Howe may look at Dubravka's experience in the top flight and the fact that he was the club's player of the season a couple of years ago to see if he can stand by the goalkeeper. Dubravka is only letting in as many goals as he would be expected to, given the quality of chances the opposition are creating.
The bigger problem for Howe and his team is that they are playing in a team which has allowed more shots at their goal than any other side in the league.
Defence.
Please use a browser that has accessibility features.
Manchester United fought back to claim a draw against a team in the bottom half of the league.
Howe will be looking for a good backline. Only eight teams have ever allowed more than 42 goals after 19 games in the premier league. They conceded 80 in the calendar year of 2021.
That leakiness is costing them and undoing any good work they do up the pitch. They have lost 19 points from winning positions this season, with the most recent example being the draw at home to Manchester United.
Please use a browser that has accessibility features.
The video player is not loading yet.
The current time is 0:00.
0:00
Currently behind liveLIVE, seek to live.
Remaining time is :
The current time is 0:00.
0:00
Currently playing live.
Remaining time is :
According to the report by the man, the club is hoping to complete a deal to bring Trippier to the club in the next week.
The club will be looking to add leadership, experience and quality to the defence in January, as the issue is increasingly looking like a personnel problem, with no significant improvement in defensive statistics since Howe took over. Trippier is certainly tickling those boxes.
There is a field.
The central midfield is struggling to create chances.
Howe's Bournemouth team conceded a lot of goals, but they were able to score their way to safety. Howe will surely like to bring that team to Newcastle because of their strength in possession. Bournemouth was ranked in the top 10 for possession in three of the five seasons they played in the premier league.
Right now, that is a weakness for the club, as they have the lowest possession stat in the top flight. It is having an impact on the creativity that is coming from the middle ground.
The man who is their top chance creator from open play is way down in the rankings. He has played left-back at times this season and it can be debated whether Allan Saint-Maximin should be classified as a forward or aMidfielder. The ball is not being produced enough from the centre of the park.
According to Opta's progress stats, which measure how well a team advance up the pitch in a spell of possession, they are third-worst in the league.
Their struggles out of possession are compounded by the issue.
The same progress statistics are used for defensive performance and show that the teams are easier to get onto.
With and without the ball, Howe will be looking for a defensive player to play in the middle of the pitch. Jack Wilshere was similar to a ball-playingMidfielder that he had at Bournemouth.
Attack.
Even though Callum Wilson was fit, the attack was not up to par.
Last week, the area of strength in the city was taken over by Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson. Howe will almost certainly have to add to his squad because of their injuries.
Wilson's calf injury will keep him out for some time, making him a major miss. He is the club's top scorer this season and the top scorer last season. Since he joined the club in the summer of 2020, Wilson has missed 20 of the club's 18 games in the top flight.
Even though Wilson and Saint-Maximin were in the squad, the Expected Goals figure was still the third worst in the division.
Howe will be trying to bring some magic to the final third.
There are problems all over the pitch to address, but they also have big resources. Their success in finding solutions in January could be the difference this season.
