Eddie Howe has admitted Newcastle United’s inability to protect leads has cost them heavily this season after another late collapse in their 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest.
Newcastle looked on course for all three points at the City Ground when substitute Harvey Barnes fired them ahead in the 74th minute.
But former Newcastle midfielder Elliot Anderson struck in the 88th minute to rescue a point for Forest, extending a damaging trend that has defined much of Newcastle’s Premier League campaign.
The result leaves Howe’s side 13th in the table and officially ends any realistic hopes of a top-seven finish.
Howe delivers honest verdict after another late setback
The Newcastle manager did not hide his frustration after watching his team surrender another winning position.
“Yeah, disappointing. I think much better in the second half, I thought we were playing really well, but we had enough chances to grow our lead.”
Howe pointed directly to the defensive hesitation that allowed Forest back into the game.
“Another late goal that cost us points, hugely frustrating for us. Probably the first time in the game where we back off a little bit and defend deeper, and then we don’t deal with the situation well enough around the box.”
That pattern has become a recurring issue for Newcastle.
And Howe admitted the scale of it has shaped their league season.
Newcastle’s dropped points tell the story
Newcastle have now dropped 27 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season — a figure that underlines why their campaign has stalled.
Having followed Newcastle’s season closely, their performances have often been competitive, but game management has repeatedly undermined strong positions.
Howe acknowledged the coaching staff have focused heavily on fixing those problems.
“It’s a difficult one for me to answer, because I can talk a good game and give you all the things that we’ve worked on, but the reality is we haven’t delivered that well enough under pressure.”
That honesty reflects the frustration inside the club.
Despite visible improvement in defensive structure in recent weeks, key moments continue to punish them.
Defensive progress undone by costly moments
Howe believes there has been progress defensively, but individual mistakes remain the difference.
“We’ve done a lot of defensive work in recent weeks. I think we have looked better for that work, but one moment today where we make probably a couple of individual errors, and it costs us.”
For Newcastle, the issue is no longer tactical alone.
It has become psychological, with pressure moments repeatedly exposing vulnerabilities late in matches.
However, it remains too early to assess how much squad changes in the summer could reshape that weakness.
What’s next?
Newcastle now return to St James' Park to host West Ham United before ending their campaign away at Fulham FC.
With European qualification now out of reach through league position, the final two games will be about finishing with momentum and addressing the problems that have repeatedly cost them.
For Howe, solving Newcastle’s game-management issue will be one of the biggest priorities heading into next season.
Can Newcastle finally stop these late collapses before the campaign ends?
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