Stuck in a Rut - The Magpies Need to End Their Away-Day Struggles

Should there be a short span that encapsulated Newcastle United's curious season.

On Sunday, Eddie Howe's team suffered a bruising 3-1 loss against lowly West Ham at London Stadium.

It was a result that left travel-sick Newcastle sitting in the lower reaches of the Premier League table.

To think this team went on to overtake Real Madrid into the sixth spot in the Champions League rankings following a 2-0 win against Athletic Club at St James' Park just days later.

That marked their fifth consecutive home victory, but that was not cause for celebration for Howe.

The upcoming visit to Brentford was not far from his mind as Newcastle look to finally address their away-day woes after failing to win on the road in the league since April.

"It's very disappointing because I think we have a style of play and a game plan that is effective, that's really effective," the Newcastle manager said.

"Somehow we have not been winning the games away from home that we ought to have.

"Now we're sort of caught in that cycle where it's turning into an issue of conversation and we're likely growing more aware of it."

Home Strengths at 'Secure' St James'

Newcastle's players were certainly made aware of it earlier this week.

There was no place for the team to hide as they were put through what back Dan Burn described as a "deeply uncomfortable" analysis session in the days after the West Ham defeat.

"It was clear how far off we were from what we demand from ourselves," Burn said. "However, that is the best way to learn.

"You have got to have some uncomfortable conversations and the coach is quite good at doing that. He is always straightforward with what he says."

Burn, who went on to score first with a powerful header, always knew that Newcastle would bounce back against Athletic.

The hosts hardly needed any added motivation to contest a Champions League match under the lights at St James'.

In his matchday notes, ahead of the game, skipper Bruno Guimaraes even wrote that the stadium was a "safe place for us where we know we play our best football."

And results certainly back those words up.

Newcastle have beaten Athletic, Tottenham, Fulham, Benfica and Nottingham Forest by an combined score of 11-1 on home soil in the last month alone.

They have a 70% win rate at St James' this season. That statistic should be even better - late concessions proved costly against Arsenal and Liverpool – but these top contenders and Barcelona are the only teams to have beaten Howe's side on Tyneside.

Each by a solitary strike.

Travel Troubles

However it has been a very different story away from home.

Newcastle have only won four matches on their away trips in 2025 and they have looked especially blunt of late.

Howe's side have scored a quarter as many goals (two) away as they have at home in the league (eight), and last-placed Wolves are the only side to have scored less (one) on the road.

Jacob Murphy's first goal against West Ham was a rare example of this side being ruthless away from home in the league – just 26 seconds after Hammers captain Jarrod Bowen had struck the post.

Though Newcastle have had more ball control away (56%) than at home (47.1%), according to Opta, Howe's team have had 30 less contact in the enemy area (110) and they have only had 50% fewer shots on target (13) on their travels, which underscores the difficulties they have faced penetrating defenses.

Newcastle could at least rely on their solidity as a base to build from earlier in the campaign following clean sheets against Aston Villa, Leeds United and Bournemouth in their first three road matches of the season.

But the away side have since leaked five goals in just two matches versus Brighton and West Ham.

That defensive effort starts with the press from the front, but Newcastle have won possession back on eight less times (16) away than at home (24), while highly-praised midfield trio Sandro Tonali, Joelinton and Guimaraes have been often circumvented on the road in recent weeks.

Burn has spoken of the need to "adopt a grittier approach", referencing how his side were "renowned a few years ago for physical play."

Howe acknowledged his side "possibly need a bit of that" ahead of Sunday's trip to the Gtech Community Stadium as he called on his players to bring the "quality, execution and, most importantly, the attitude".

"It's about playing a game of football and producing a good performance – regardless of where we are playing," he said.

"Our sole method we can address those doubts is to perform and get the job done."