Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe explains Chris Wood's omission from his starting XI

Eddie Howe has explained his decision to leave Chris Wood out of his Newcastle United starting XI.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Wood, for the second successive Premier League game, was named on the bench by Eddie Howe, who fielded Allan Saint-Maximin up front for this afternoon’s home fixture against Liverpool

Wood, signed from Burnley in January, came off the bench in a 1-0 defeat for Newcastle.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Asked about the decision, head coach Howe told BBC Match of the Day: “We view every game independently. We needed to be strong down the sides against Liverpool’s wide players. Chris has been fantastic, but it was an opportunity to look at something else."

United take on Manchester City next Sunday, and Howe added: “We weren’t at our best today, but we were still in the game right to the end, so there are positives to take. But we set our standards very high, and, next week, we have to do much better.”