'It's a horrible feeling' - Eddie Howe admits he's 'unsure' about Newcastle squad's 'mentality' amid miserable run away from home

After a difficult start to their 2025-26 campaign, the Magpies felt that they were slowly gaining some momentum as they remained unbeaten in their last three Premier League outings before heading to the Stadium of Light last weekend, which included a win over Manchester City in November. Newcastle were looking to continue that upturn in form by beating their local rivals, but they produced a terrible performance. Nick Woltemade's own goal early in the second half sealed the three points for Sunderland and piled pressure on Howe in the Newcastle dugout.

Howe raised questions on his players' mental strength after the Sunderland defeat as he told reporters: "It's a horrible feeling, because when you enter a game you want your players to go on to the pitch and give absolutely everything they have within their soul and their body to get a positive result. That's the only thing I ever ask a player to do. Then I back their abilities once they go on to the pitch with that mindset to deliver a really good performance. 

"There have been a few times this season where I've left a game unsure on that, and that's mentality. That's knowing you're representing yourself and your families when you enter the pitch. Your job is to do your best, and I think we have lost a little bit of that, and it's up to us to try and find a way to get that glue back."

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After conceding a defeat at the Stadium of Light, Newcastle captain Bruno Guimaraes did not hide his frustration as he slammed his colleagues publicly. The Brazilian said: "I'm very angry, I'm so embarrassed and I'm so frustrated. There was no crossing, no passing and no shooting. No nothing. It was a mess, in my opinion. We know we have a better team than them (Sunderland) but we didn't play like the better team. It was a mess. The consistency isn't there, the mentality isn't there. We didn't compete. The fans expect and deserve better. We accepted the way they play with the long balls. You need to compete in a derby and we didn't."

He added: "Disappointed, frustrated, lack of energy, don't put the things that we are able to do, cross the ball, pass the ball. We were like a mess in my point of view. Disappointed, angry. This one is a tough one to accept. I've played many, many derbies in my career. It's not easy to get a defeat, but today I think we disappointed the fans. We disappointed the fans in general because they were expecting much more. We were as well. But we didn't perform like the team that should come here with the right mentality. So yeah, we understand the fans. Now we have just, for me, one way to go. That is beating everyone, improving our form, qualifying the club for the semi-final of the Carabao Cup, qualifying for the Champions League and improving our level in the Premier League as well."

The Magpies will now aim to bounce back from the derby loss as early as possible amid a hectic schedule in December. They shift focus to their title defence campaign in the Carabao Cup as they next face Fulham at home in a quarter-final clash on Wednesday. Following the cup tie, the club are scheduled to face Chelsea, Manchester United and Burnley in a span of 10 days in the Premier League.