Eddie Howe delivers blunt Newcastle United verdict after Aston Villa defeat

Aston Villa won 3-0 this afternoon thanks to two goals from Ollie Watkins and a strike from Jacob Ramsey.

"I think it’s one of those performances that we need to analyse – and move on quickly,” said United’s head coach. “We weren’t there today. Villa did well, but, by our own standard, we were off it, and if that’s the case, you’re never going to win.

"We had our moments, but we weren’t at our best, that was obvious. We tried to make changes to get a grip of the game, but nothing changed the force of the game. Very unlike us, the performance.

"I think we tried to make subs to impact the game, we were chasing the game. That made us a little more open, but, from our perspective, we have to look at ourselves.

"I don’t think it’s a stage to over-analyse. Hopefully, we can use this as a positive where we can highlight what went wrong, because today we didn’t deliver."