SOCCER: Howe hopes win over Burnley will ease some of Newcastle's pressure

BURNLEY, England – Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe expressed optimism that his team's 3-1 victory over Burnley on Tuesday will help ease the pressure after a tense first half of the Premier League season.

Joelinton, Yoane Wissa, and Bruno Guimaraes scored in a rare away win that moved Newcastle up to 10th place in the league standings with 26 points, six points shy of the top four.

Despite the win, the team is still short of the expectations of supporters, especially after Newcastle lifted last year’s League Cup—their first domestic trophy in 70 years—and qualified for the Champions League for the second time in three seasons.

“It was a massive win for us. We needed to win because we knew we were under pressure,” Howe said. “I thought the lads responded really well; it was a really fast start. We scored some excellent goals, and then, being us at this present time, we made it difficult for ourselves.

“The second half was nervy at points. There were a couple of moments where Nick [Pope, Newcastle’s goalkeeper] made crucial saves for us. But overall, I thought we showed real character and resilience to get over the line.”

Newcastle’s recent dip in form has partly been attributed to the departure of striker Alexander Isak to Liverpool during the close season.

Howe hopes Tuesday’s victory will boost team morale.

“I hope it relaxes us slightly—not in a negative way, but in a positive way,” he said. “We want to play fluent, attacking football, which is really enjoyable to watch. But you can only do that when you are in a good mental place and relaxed. Hopefully, this helps settle us after a difficult period.”

-Reporting by Lori Ewing; Editing by Christian Radnedge/Reuters