At St James’ Park, they have registered just one win in their past six games – last month’s impressive victory over Manchester United, which came despite playing the second half with 10 men.
A delegation of officials from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Newcastle’s majority owners, flew to the North East for meetings this week and the club’s dire form was said to be high on the agenda.
One worrying trend for Howe to address is his side’s inability to hold on to a lead. Twice last month – at Crystal Palace and in the Tyne-Wear derby against Sunderland – Newcastle lost the game despite going ahead.
They have dropped a league-high 25 points from winning positions this season. To compound the situation, the Magpies have won just three points from losing positions this term, the joint fewest in the division.
Brighton breezy
A superb run of six wins in eight league games since being knocked out of the FA Cup on Valentine’s Day has left Brighton dreaming of some romantic European getaways next season.
The Seagulls are currently sixth, trailing Aston Villa by eight points. Finishing sixth should mean qualification for the Europa League, but there is still an outside chance it could result in Champions League football.
How? It would require Villa to win the Europa League – they trail Nottingham Forest 1-0 after Thursday’s semi-final first leg – and finish fifth in the league, the position they currently occupy.
Whatever happens between now and the end of the season, Danny Welbeck’s status as a cult hero in East Sussex is not in doubt. The Englishman will feel very hard done by if he isn’t selected for World Cup duty by Thomas Tuchel after the best goalscoring season of his career.
Welbeck, 35, has notched 13 top-flight goals so far, including two in the reverse fixture in October, a game Brighton won 2-1. Only six players in the competition have scored more in a campaign while aged 34 or older.