Eddie Howe’s midfield tweak credited for Newcastle United revival after Ipswich demolition

Alan Shearer has credited Eddie Howe’s tactical tweaks for helping Newcastle United hit on a better-rounded system that has helped them find a much more promising vein of pre-Christmas form.

After a run of just two wins in 11 Premier League games, Newcastle have looked a lot more convincing over the past couple of games, claiming back-to-back four-goal wins over newly-promoted duo Leicester City and Ipswich Town as well as earning passage to the League Cup semi-finals with a 3-1 win over Brentford.

Newcastle’s counter-attacking abilities have never been in doubt, but former Magpies goal machine and manager Shearer believes that Howe’s tweaks to their midfield shape has helped them to add a different dimension to their play.

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He explained on Match of the Day: “In recent games he’s put [Sandro] Tonali in the 6 role and moved Bruno Guimaraes a little bit further forward, given him a little bit more freedom to get into forward positions, and it’s certainly helped both of the players I think, and more importantly the team.

“Tonali will sit there, he’s very good at that, and I think he feels more important in that role, and he’s certainly a better player because he can do that. A lot of the time when he gets the ball, within one or two touches he likes and wants to play the ball forward, which for the forward players is much much better. He has to do his job defensively as well, and certainly has done that in recent games.