Howe post Newcastle cup exit at City
Howe post Newcastle cup exit at City
Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England
Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England
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00:00 Eddie, you said yesterday that you'd need a bit of luck coming here tonight, you obviously
00:20 didn't get that with the two deflected goals, how do you assess the whole performance as
00:25 well?
00:26 "Of course the goals are difficult to take, especially the first one which was a big deflection
00:31 and it flies into the top corner. I don't know really what to say to that, that's just
00:39 the football gods working against us today in that respect. I thought the lads gave everything
00:44 today, it's very difficult to blame Manchester City at any time. But when they're in that
00:49 kind of mood and they pick those kind of players, their technical base, their aim was to keep
00:54 possession and make it difficult for us. We're trying to unsettle their rhythm and win the
00:57 ball back high. It was a really delicate game between both ways and I thought we did okay,
01:05 I thought we stuck at it, I thought we did unsettle them at times. They went quite direct
01:09 into Haaland so that was an interesting part of the game. But I think ultimately when we
01:15 did get into the final third we did have the opportunities to hurt them, our quality wasn't
01:18 there and that's probably the big disappointment looking back now."
01:20 It's very unusual for you to go with a back five, how do you think players dealt with
01:29 that and do you feel looking back now it was the right decision?
01:33 We tried to just give them a different problem, we've played against them a lot this season
01:38 already and we tried to be creative with our team selection today, always with an eye on
01:44 both phases of defending and attacking. We felt possibly two strikers could give us a
01:51 better platform to attack and I do think there were high points within that, I don't think
01:54 it was all negative. Alex's chance is a big moment in the game which we were fortunate
02:00 not to take but overall we weren't good enough, they were better than us. I thought technically
02:06 they were superb today.
02:07 It was always going to be a very difficult task to go through to the tround and keep
02:13 the dream alive but how is the overall feeling in the dressing room knowing that's another
02:17 year without some silverware at the Football Club?
02:20 It is but I don't think we can feel sorry for ourselves or have that kind of emotion,
02:24 it's happened. This season could have ended up very different, it seems the big moments
02:30 have just gone against us but we have to take responsibility for that. But we will come
02:35 back, I think the two-week break has come at a good time for us to let this result sink
02:40 in and then focus on our last ten games in the Premier League.
02:45 Lee Rider then Chris Woff.
02:47 Eddie, you're flying off to Dubai now, what sort of things will you be doing there and
02:53 what sort of things will you be focusing on that you didn't see this evening?
02:59 I think as always there will be a period of relaxation for the players after a very busy
03:04 period, we've got some injuries to try and get players fit for our next game. And then
03:11 there will be a period of work where we will analyse today's game and then pick the pieces
03:16 up and work on, I don't know at this moment what that will be, but of course looking ahead
03:24 to our next opponent we will get some good work in, we will get some fitness work in
03:28 and we will come back stronger for it.
03:29 And obviously playing five at the back, do you think you will be doing that again moving
03:34 forward or was that just a one-off?
03:37 As I said I wanted to change things around for this game, I think that was in my mind
03:40 as soon as the draw was made. I thought there were some positives to take from it, so it's
03:46 not something I would rule out again. And I've always said all systems are open to me,
03:51 I'm never closed off if I think there's a better solution. But also I want the players
03:55 to play the game in a framework that they know and they understand and they can deliver,
04:00 so we'll wait and see.
04:01 I know it was Manchester City and their quality, but two shots, one shot on target and two
04:10 shots overall, I know you'll be disappointed with that.
04:14 Yeah, of course, you want to be a bigger attacking threat than that in the game. I do think there
04:17 were moments for us where we didn't end up shooting but we were looking, or had the ball
04:22 in threatening positions, probably highlighted by a counter-attack with Migi and Alex towards
04:27 the end. But certainly those numbers aren't good enough, and it's not a reflection on
04:31 where we've been from an attacking sense this season, we've scored a lot of goals, so we
04:34 know we're capable.
04:35 What is the issue with Nautino Liveramendo?
04:42 It was a twist of the ankle against Chelsea.
04:51 He knew probably the day after the game that he wasn't going to make this weekend.
04:54 How serious is this?
04:56 I don't think it's serious, we hope he'll be back for the next match.
04:59 In terms of the players today, you made a quadruple substitution, were any of those
05:03 fitness-related?
05:04 I don't think so.
05:07 Scott?
05:08 Eddie, there's obviously still a European qualification to play for in the rest of this
05:16 season, but is the remainder of this season one of the most important things now, going
05:21 to be to generate a little bit more positivity in terms of the general mood around the place?
05:26 It does feel like it's been a tough run really, ever since the Champions League ended.
05:32 Yes, I agree with that.
05:36 We have a responsibility in these final 10 games to build.
05:40 Of course we'll have our targets for this season, but we're always building for the
05:42 future and to make sure we're the most competitive team we can be.
05:46 There'll be no negativity from me or from the players, we know the importance of representing
05:52 the club well in every single game, in every single moment.
05:56 So I still feel we have a huge amount to play for.
06:00 I know just on the back of that, you've mentioned this before, but any kind of European qualification
06:06 would still be very, very important, wouldn't it, in what's left, whether it be Conference
06:09 League, Europa League, eighth, seventh, whatever, obviously a lot of that is still to be decided.
06:14 Yes, absolutely, and that's our aim.
06:16 That's why I say there's a huge amount to play for.
06:19 If people say our season's over, that's absolute nonsense as far as I'm concerned.
06:23 We're driving forward to try and get our best form back first and foremost, to try and win
06:27 as many games as we can, finish the season in a positive way, because no doubt we'll
06:32 take that feeling into next year as well.
06:34 I do feel we have a lot to be positive about, but we also have a lot to analyse and reflect
06:38 on and try and improve.
06:44 - Absolutely.
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